Department of Philosophy

Welcome to the Department of Philosophy

We offer an undergraduate major and minor in Philosophy, a minor in Ethics, and contribute to the interdisciplinary major in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE), as well as to the new interdisciplinary major in Cognitive Science.

 

 

Upcoming Events

Sun Kyeong Yu, MSU Mankato, "Paradigm Shifts in Molecular Biology" Thursday, February 28, 2013, 4:30PM, Morris Hall 103

George Brenkert, Professor of Business Ethics, McDonough School of Business – Georgetown University, "Is Ethics a Softball Player in the Hardball World of Business" Thursday, April 4, 2013, 7PM, Wieking Hall Auditorium

Alex Voorhoeve, Reader of Philosophy, Logic, and the Scientific Method, London School of Economics / Princeton University, “Why Death is not bad when you are Supremely Self-Satisfied” Thursday, April 11, 2013, 4:30PM, Morris Hall 103

Charles Mills, John Evans Professor of Moral and Intellectual Philosophy, Northwestern University, "Rawls and Racial Justice" Thursday, April 18, 2013, 7PM, Ostrander Auditorium (The talk is cancelled due to weather conditions.)

Martha Nussbaum, Ernst Freund Distinguished Service Professor of Law and Ethics, University of Chicago, "Not For Profit: Why Democracy Needs the Humanities" Monday, September 23, 2013, 7PM, Ostrander Auditorium  

 

Affiliated Programs

Cognitive Science

Cognitive Science is an interdisciplinary inquiry concerned with understanding the nature and development of such intelligent capacities as perception, language, reasoning, learning and problem-solving, whether these capacities are realized in biological or artificial systems. Such inquiry is by its very nature interdisciplinary, integrating methodological, theoretical and practical foci of Biology, Computer Science, Philosophy and Psychology into a single course of study.  The cognitive science major is a broad major and does not require that a student complete a minor in addition to the major. Each Cognitive Science major will concentrate in one of the four participating disciplines: Biology, Computer Science, Philosophy and Psychology.

Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE)

Minnesota State University, Mankato’s new bachelor’s degree in Philosophy, Politics & Economics (PPE). This unique combination of disciplines allows you to focus on the dynamic relationships between the economic, political and legal systems of our society. The PPE major will prepare you for a career in law, business, public policy, journalism, civil service or international affairs.