PHILOSOPHY

 

Mission Statement

 

The Philosophy Program encourages and assists both UNF students and members of the wider community to appreciate the great intellectual conversations, clarify unexamined assumptions, evaluate the ideas and norms that motivate intellectual inquiry, and participate intelligently and responsibly in public debates.

 

Student Learning Outcomes

 

UNF Philosophy graduates will:

 

Content/Disciplinary Knowledge & Skills

• Possess substantive knowledge and appreciation of main developments, traditions, and/or topics in the discipline of philosophy, including theoretical, practical, or historical domains. This may be evidenced in written work by:
  
  
  • a clear exposition or reconstruction of a particular theory or issue
    
    
  • knowledge of the context of the theory/issue
    
    
  • appreciation of the meaning, significance, implication, and/or application of the theory/issue

Critical Thinking Skills

• Possess critical reasoning skills and facility with logical analysis. This may be evidenced in written work where:
  
  
  • argumentative premises are properly evidenced or explained
    
    
  • arguments are well reasoned, with conclusions properly following from premises
    
    
  • no informal fallacies are committed
    
    
  • any recommended action flows from reasons provided
    
    
    

 

 

Communication Skills

• Write in a reasoned, persuasive, and argumentatively effective manner. In their written work, they will:
  
  
  • articulate a clearly defined thesis
    
    
  • advance the thesis in a clear, even, organized, coherent, and systematic manner
    
    
  • support the thesis by providing evidence, examples, and argument
    
    
  • consider and respond to possible objections to the thesis
    
    
  • avoid spelling, mechanical, grammatical, or punctuation mistakes
    
    
  • correctly identify, acknowledge, and document sources
    
    
    
• Possess the verbal skills needed both for individual presentations and participation in group discussions. The student will demonstrate such skills by:
  
  
  • presenting a well-structured, clear, and comprehensive summary of a particular project
    
    
  • offering answers to questions which are thorough and substantive
    
    
  • avoiding unnecessary jargon while showing full competency in the use of philosophic and theoretic terminology

 

• Possess the ability to read complex argumentative prose in a systematic, interpretive, and critical manner. Student can demonstrate these skills by providing an explanatory exposition of a theory or the subject of some complex argumentative prose in which he/she:
  
  
  • uses his or her own words to explain or restate the theory
    
    
  • presents a rigorous analysis, interpretation, or assessment of the text(s)
    
    
  • recognizes fallacious, invalid, or unsound reasoning
    
    
  • acknowledges conflicting evidence and alternative perspectives or explanations
    
    
  • shows originality or independence of thought in presenting ideas, arguments, or issues
    
    
    
    

Curriculum Map
Click on the image below to see in which Philosophy courses these Student Learning Outcomes are addressed:

Click Here to See the Philosophy Curriculum Map

Assessment Approaches

 

Numerous direct and indirect measures of student learning will be employed to assess mastery of the intended

student learning outcomes. Course embedded assessments using a defined scoring rubric (criterion-base rating scale) will be one of the principle assessment approaches within the Philosophy program. Other direct measures of learning outcomes may include senior seminar essays and reports, and senior exit interviews. Indirect measures may include employer or alumni surveys, student perception surveys, and gradute school placement rates.

 

Career Opportunities

 

For information on the many career options available to Philosophy majors, go to What Can You Do with an Philosophy Major at: http://www.unf.edu/dept/cdc/majors/philosophy.html

 

For More Information

 

To learn more about the UNF Philosophy Department and majoring in Philosophy, go to http://www.unf.edu/coas/philosophy/

 

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