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Philosophy as a General Studies Course
The Department of Philosophy strives to provide our students both formal and informal occasions to relfect upon and engage in the great human conversation about the nature and meaning of human existence, with an eye to our commitments to the concepts of truth, freedom, and opportunity. We offer many courses that count towards general studies requirements. If your looking for a class to fullfill your GS requirements consider one of the courses listed below.
PHI courses that count towards General Studies
PHI 1010-Big Questions
Credits: 3
Prerequisite(s): Minimum performance standard scores on the reading and writing preassessment placement tests
Description: Philosophy asks questions such as: What am I? How can I know things? What is real? Does God exist? Students confront questions like these in a rigorous, critical, and open-ended manner. Philosophy is unlike other disciplines: students learn not just what others have discovered, but also how to think about themselves, the world, and the relation between them.
Note: Credit will be granted for only one prefix: PHI or HON.
General Studies: Arts and Humanities
Guaranteed Transfer: GT-AH3
Cross Listed Course(s): HON 1011
PHI 1030- Morality and the Good Life
Credits: 3
Prerequisite(s): Minimum performance standard scores on the reading and writing preassessment placement tests
Description: Have you ever had a hard time deciding the right thing to do? In this course, students learn how to think more critically about moral values and develop their own perspectives while considering questions such as: “How should I best live my life?” “What should I value?”, “How can I best determine right from wrong?”, “What does social justice require?”, and “What do we owe to each other?”
General Studies: Arts and Humanities
Guaranteed Transfer: GT-AH3
PHI 1040-Asian Religions
Credits: 3
Prerequisite(s): Minimum standards on reading and writing placement tests
Description: In this course, students explore the rich religious traditions that originated in Asia (such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism) by studying their historical development, key ideas and teachings, central figures and events, and varieties of cultural expression. Students investigate questions such as: What is religion? How do religions begin and develop over time? And, why do religions end?
General Studies: Arts and Humanities, Global Diversity
Guaranteed Transfer: GT-AH3
PHI 105O-Intro to Western Religions
Credits: 3
Prerequisite(s): Minimum performance standard scores on the reading and writing placement tests
Description: This course is an introductory survey of the major religious communities of the West (originating Near East), with primary emphasis on the historical evolution and living traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
General Studies: Arts and Humanities
Guaranteed Transfer: GT-AH3
PHI 1110- Language, Logic & Persuasion
Credits: 3
Description: This course is an introduction to critical analysis, thinking and expression, covering three main areas: (1) language: the significance of words, and their arrangements, in psychological appeals to the senses and the emotions; (2) logic: the structures of formal reasoning in arguments and in appeals to reason; and (3) persuasion: the rhetorical aspects of discourse and presentation, especially in appeals to ideals or character. Practical skills and applications will be emphasized.
General Studies: Oral Communication
Credits: 3
Prerequisite(s): PHI 1010 or PHI 1030 or PHI 1040 or PHI 1050 recommended
Description: This is a course on the philosophical dimensions of religious faith, belief, and/or practice; the nature and scope of religious experiences; and/or the existence and/or source of divinity. This course satisfies the General Studies Arts and Humanities Requirement.
General Studies: Arts and Humanities
Guaranteed Transfer: GT-AH3
Credits: 3
Description: This course is a survey of the history of ancient philosophy, focusing on the Greeks. The life and work of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle receive special attention.
General Studies: Arts and Humanities
Credits: 3
Description: This course is a survey of the history of modern philosophy, from the Renaissance to Romanticism. The work of Descartes, Hume, and Kant receive special attention.
General Studies: Arts and Humanities
Credits: 3
Prerequisite(s): At least junior standing; ENG 1020
Description: This course investigates the value conflicts that arise in modern businesses given current circumstances. It is a major purpose of the course to prepare students to become ethical and effective business professionals. The course examines such issues as how to adjudicate between a corporation’s obligations to its shareholders and its obligations to society at large and how best to insure that corporations conduct their affairs in an ethical and aboveboard manner.
General Studies: Arts and Humanities
Credits: 3
Prerequisite(s): One of the following: Any PHI course or any CSI course or equivalent
Description: The course discusses various ethical frameworks in which to consider issues that computers raise with regard to concepts of personhood, privacy, property. Additionally, it considers the wider social, legal, and political implications of computers as they pertain to the nature of work, professionalism, and the determination of risk and liability.
General Studies: Arts and Humanities