Program Overview

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Master of Arts in Philosophy

The Master of Arts in Philosophy program requires students to satisfy the general requirements stated in the catalog, as well as specific departmental requirements.

Admission Requirements

To be admitted to the program, applicants must:

• Submit a graduate application to the University's Office of Admissions and Records
• Submit a transcript from all colleges and universities attended to the Office of Enrollment Services
• Meet with the Graduate Advisor for assessment and to plan a program of study

Admission with Classified Status

An applicant may be admitted to the MA program in Philosophy in classified status after satisfying University requirements for admission and the following prerequisites:

1. A bachelor's degree with a minimum of 24 units of upper division philosophy courses, comparable to those required for the BA in philosophy at this University
2. Satisfactory performance on the Department's Basic Qualifying Exam (BQE)

Admission with Conditionally Classified Status

Until students have met the requirements for classified status, they may be admitted and attend the university with conditionally classified status. Conditionally classified students must:

• Attempt the Basic Qualifying Exam (BQE) by the end of their second semester in the program and pass it by the end of their third semester if they have no deficiencies in prerequisite preparation
• Attempt the BQE by the end of their third semester in the program and pass it by the end of their fourth semester if they must rectify a deficiency

Basic Qualifying Exam

The BQE comprises two sections:

• Analytic section: assesses the student's ability to extract, explain, and evaluate arguments from short passages
• Text section: assesses the student's ability to read, interpret, and critically evaluate a more lengthy philosophical text Students may attempt one or both sections of the BQE on those occasions when it is administered. Normally, students must pass both parts of the BQE by their second attempt.

Advancement to Candidacy

Advancement to Candidacy is the next step after acquiring classified status and confers catalog rights to graduate students. To advance to candidacy, students must:

1. Fulfill the CSULB Graduate Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR)
2. Maintain a minimum 3.0 overall grade point average in all units undertaken in the philosophy program
3. Obtain approval of a program of study by the Graduate Advisor, which must include satisfactory performance in the proseminar, and approval by the department faculty of either a thesis proposal or a proposed set of three comprehensive examinations
4. Demonstrate a foreign language proficiency if required by the philosophy department

Requirements for the Degree

The student's graduate program must consist of:

1. Not less than 30 units of acceptable upper division and graduate courses, of which at least 24 units must be in philosophy
2. A minimum of 21 units of philosophy graduate courses, with a minimum of 9 units from the 600 series
3. A thesis and oral defense thereof, or a set of three comprehensive examinations

Undergraduate Programs

The College of Liberal Arts offers the following undergraduate programs in Philosophy:

• Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy
• Honors in Philosophy
• Minor in Philosophy

Graduate Programs

The College of Liberal Arts offers the following graduate program in Philosophy:

• Master of Arts in Philosophy

Courses

The Philosophy department offers a range of courses, including:

• Lower Division
• Upper Division
• Graduate Level A list of Philosophy courses is available, including course prefixes and descriptions.