Philosophy - Majors & Minors - Knox College
Source: https://www.knox.edu/academics/majors-and-minors/philosophy
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:11
Philosophy - Majors & Minors - Knox College
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Philosophy
Learn to communicate clearly, question assumptions, and defend your ideas—skills that are important in any field.
Meet Your Professors
Visit Knox
Experiences & Opportunities
Career Outcomes
Philosophy Faculty
Philosophy Courses
Philosophy Requirements
Major, Minor
Sharpen your mind. Use it everywhere.
Philosophy helps you think more clearly about the questions you already care about—from moral responsibility and social justice to pop culture and everyday decision-making. Students enjoy the collaborative, conversational nature of our classes, and they value the sense that philosophy equips them with tools they can immediately use in other fields and in everyday life.
Philosophy also helps you learn to write with precision rather than generality. How? You’re expected to explain your reasoning clearly, support your ideas with strong arguments, and think through possible objections.
Over time, students realize these skills are a huge advantage. The ability to read carefully, think critically, and write clearly doesn’t just help in philosophy, it improves their work in every class.
Major or Minor in Philosophy
Requirements
Courses
Course Spotlight
Philosophy courses at Knox invite students to connect abstract ideas to concrete cases. Where else can you study Taylor Swift’s re-recordings, debate political issues (like free speech, justice, and inequality), grapple with matters of life and death, consider the role that technology plays in our lives, and have a full class discussion about whether a hot dog counts as a sandwich or “Old Town Road” counts as a country song?
PHIL 116 Introduction to Metaphysics
PHIL 195H Philosophy (Taylor’s Version)
PHIL 228 Death and Life
PHIL 230 Political Philosophy
PHIL 245 Philosophy of Games
PHIL 295FF The Digital Self
Philosophy Bootcamp
One of the most unique experiences in philosophy at Knox is our yearly advanced seminar. In this course, students choose a philosophical question that interests them and research it in depth. Through hands-on workshops, they learn how to build strong arguments, write clearly, and fine-tune their work.
The seminar ends with a symposium on campus where students present and defend their ideas before a public audience. Many students call it a philosophy “bootcamp” because it’s challenging, focused, and rewarding. Recent topics have included the philosophies of food, literature, the body, and language—showing just how wide-ranging philosophy can be.
What Our Philosophy Alumni Are Doing
Successful philosophy students are curious, open-minded, and willing to slow down and think carefully. You’ll find our grads working in technology, law, government, public policy, business, education, mental health, the arts, and advanced academic research.
Samuel Brownson ’12 | Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist, Chicago, Illinois
Kate Sutcliffe ’12 | Merchant Operations Manager, Forage, San Francisco, California
William (John) Budding ’13 | Talent Acquisition Manager, Harvard Business School, Boston, Massachusetts
Ruth Amerman ’14 | School-based Therapist, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Maxwell Gatyas ’14 | Assistant Professor of Philosophy, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Whitewater, Wisconsin
James Sheppard ’14 (pictured) | Software Engineer, Vienna, Austria
Nat Baldino ’15 | Senior Policy Analyst at the Center for Law and Social Policy, Washington, D.C.
Anya Wang ’17 | Ph.D. student in Philosophy, Fordham University
Gus Martini ’19 | Professional Bassist, Chicago, Illinois
Sayan Trisal ’22 | Student, Moritz College of Law - The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
Cianja Bone ’23 (pictured) | Marketing and Donor Development, The Project of the Quad Cities, Moline, Illinois
Juan Ramirez ‘23 | M.A. student in Psychology, Western Illinois University
Alexa Custer ’25 | Ph.D. student in Philosophy, University of Missouri
Athko Ehrnstein ’25 | Ph.D. student in Philosophy, Duquesne University
Philosophy News
Read More News
Professor Brandon Polite '03 to Publish Anthology ft. Taylor Swift... Are You Ready for it?
To compile the book’s content, Polite reached out to his interviewees from his Taylor Swift miniseries.
Read More
Students Explore Urban Living, Barbie, and More During Immersion Summer 2024
Knox students participated in multiple intensive four-week immersive programs during summer 2024.
Read More
Knox Philosophy Students Debate Ethics of Food During Two-Day Symposium
Philosophy students presented the research they completed over winter term as their capstone project.
Read More
Meet Our Philosophy Majors and Minors
Madison Byrket
Madison didn't plan to major in philosophy, until she spoke with Professor of Philosophy Brandon Polite ’03.
Meet Madison
Glenn Mandel ’81
Glenn's career path into law was unconventional, beginning with international recruiting and, ultimately, leading him to law school
Meet Glenn
Juan Manuel Ramirez
Juan makes use of one of Knox's four-week research summer projects to expand his knowledge of environmental studies.
Meet Juan
Philosophy FAQs
Philosophy majors develop transferable skills—critical thinking, analytical reading, persuasive writing, and ethical reasoning—that prepare them for a wide range of careers and graduate programs.
No. Philosophy at Knox emphasizes applied questions and practical reasoning, and it is designed to support students with diverse goals, not just future academics.
Yes. The flexibility of the major and minor makes philosophy easy to combine with other fields, often enhancing students’ work in their other disciplines rather than competing with it.
Is Knox for you?
Contact us to find out more about our comprehensive majors, minors, and programs.
Loading...
Skip to Main Content
Philosophy
Learn to communicate clearly, question assumptions, and defend your ideas—skills that are important in any field.
Meet Your Professors
Visit Knox
Experiences & Opportunities
Career Outcomes
Philosophy Faculty
Philosophy Courses
Philosophy Requirements
Major, Minor
Sharpen your mind. Use it everywhere.
Philosophy helps you think more clearly about the questions you already care about—from moral responsibility and social justice to pop culture and everyday decision-making. Students enjoy the collaborative, conversational nature of our classes, and they value the sense that philosophy equips them with tools they can immediately use in other fields and in everyday life.
Philosophy also helps you learn to write with precision rather than generality. How? You’re expected to explain your reasoning clearly, support your ideas with strong arguments, and think through possible objections.
Over time, students realize these skills are a huge advantage. The ability to read carefully, think critically, and write clearly doesn’t just help in philosophy, it improves their work in every class.
Major or Minor in Philosophy
Requirements
Courses
Course Spotlight
Philosophy courses at Knox invite students to connect abstract ideas to concrete cases. Where else can you study Taylor Swift’s re-recordings, debate political issues (like free speech, justice, and inequality), grapple with matters of life and death, consider the role that technology plays in our lives, and have a full class discussion about whether a hot dog counts as a sandwich or “Old Town Road” counts as a country song?
PHIL 116 Introduction to Metaphysics
PHIL 195H Philosophy (Taylor’s Version)
PHIL 228 Death and Life
PHIL 230 Political Philosophy
PHIL 245 Philosophy of Games
PHIL 295FF The Digital Self
Philosophy Bootcamp
One of the most unique experiences in philosophy at Knox is our yearly advanced seminar. In this course, students choose a philosophical question that interests them and research it in depth. Through hands-on workshops, they learn how to build strong arguments, write clearly, and fine-tune their work.
The seminar ends with a symposium on campus where students present and defend their ideas before a public audience. Many students call it a philosophy “bootcamp” because it’s challenging, focused, and rewarding. Recent topics have included the philosophies of food, literature, the body, and language—showing just how wide-ranging philosophy can be.
What Our Philosophy Alumni Are Doing
Successful philosophy students are curious, open-minded, and willing to slow down and think carefully. You’ll find our grads working in technology, law, government, public policy, business, education, mental health, the arts, and advanced academic research.
Samuel Brownson ’12 | Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist, Chicago, Illinois
Kate Sutcliffe ’12 | Merchant Operations Manager, Forage, San Francisco, California
William (John) Budding ’13 | Talent Acquisition Manager, Harvard Business School, Boston, Massachusetts
Ruth Amerman ’14 | School-based Therapist, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Maxwell Gatyas ’14 | Assistant Professor of Philosophy, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Whitewater, Wisconsin
James Sheppard ’14 (pictured) | Software Engineer, Vienna, Austria
Nat Baldino ’15 | Senior Policy Analyst at the Center for Law and Social Policy, Washington, D.C.
Anya Wang ’17 | Ph.D. student in Philosophy, Fordham University
Gus Martini ’19 | Professional Bassist, Chicago, Illinois
Sayan Trisal ’22 | Student, Moritz College of Law - The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
Cianja Bone ’23 (pictured) | Marketing and Donor Development, The Project of the Quad Cities, Moline, Illinois
Juan Ramirez ‘23 | M.A. student in Psychology, Western Illinois University
Alexa Custer ’25 | Ph.D. student in Philosophy, University of Missouri
Athko Ehrnstein ’25 | Ph.D. student in Philosophy, Duquesne University
Philosophy News
Read More News
Professor Brandon Polite '03 to Publish Anthology ft. Taylor Swift... Are You Ready for it?
To compile the book’s content, Polite reached out to his interviewees from his Taylor Swift miniseries.
Read More
Students Explore Urban Living, Barbie, and More During Immersion Summer 2024
Knox students participated in multiple intensive four-week immersive programs during summer 2024.
Read More
Knox Philosophy Students Debate Ethics of Food During Two-Day Symposium
Philosophy students presented the research they completed over winter term as their capstone project.
Read More
Meet Our Philosophy Majors and Minors
Madison Byrket
Madison didn't plan to major in philosophy, until she spoke with Professor of Philosophy Brandon Polite ’03.
Meet Madison
Glenn Mandel ’81
Glenn's career path into law was unconventional, beginning with international recruiting and, ultimately, leading him to law school
Meet Glenn
Juan Manuel Ramirez
Juan makes use of one of Knox's four-week research summer projects to expand his knowledge of environmental studies.
Meet Juan
Philosophy FAQs
Philosophy majors develop transferable skills—critical thinking, analytical reading, persuasive writing, and ethical reasoning—that prepare them for a wide range of careers and graduate programs.
No. Philosophy at Knox emphasizes applied questions and practical reasoning, and it is designed to support students with diverse goals, not just future academics.
Yes. The flexibility of the major and minor makes philosophy easy to combine with other fields, often enhancing students’ work in their other disciplines rather than competing with it.
Is Knox for you?
Contact us to find out more about our comprehensive majors, minors, and programs.
Loading...