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2024-2025

Philosophy, Bachelor of Arts

VCU

Community college:
Any AA, AA&S, AS or AFA degree (Virginia Community College System)
Virginia Community College System
Associate degree

Associate of Arts, Associate of Arts & Sciences, Associate of Science, or Associate of Fine Arts

Completing the associate degree will waive VCU's general education requirements.

Program description

Philosophy aims at a deeper understanding of matters that should most concern the human race. Philosophical questions crop up in science, religion, art, morality, politics, medicine and in everyday life. Philosophy Students enrolled in philosophy are encouraged to think seriously about fundamental issues in all these domains and to formulate coherent and well-grounded points of view. Because of its extensive use of critical and analytical reasoning, philosophy equips students for careers in medicine, law, business and other fields that require careful thought and the clear expression of ideas.


Majors intending to pursue graduate studies in philosophy are advised to follow this curriculum.

Career opportunities

An undergraduate degree in philosophy is good preparation for graduate study in areas such as law or public administration. Obtain leadership roles in school or community organizations. Excellent verbal and written communication skills are imperative for most careers related to law, politics, or government. Gain experience in fundraising and grant writing techniques. Nonprofit and educational organizations are often funded in this manner. Part-time and summer jobs, internships, and volunteer positions are critical to gaining the experience and skills that employers seek.

Bachelor-level job titles
  • Compliance Manager
  • Congressional Aide
  • Editor
  • Labor Relations Specialist
  • Management Analyst
  • Medical Records and Health Information Technicians
  • Paralegal
  • Social and Human Services Assistant
  • Social Science Research Assistant
  • Technical Writer
Graduate and professional level job titles
  • Attorney
  • Legislator
  • Policy Advisor
  • Religious Leader or Chaplain
Contact information

 

VCU Transfer Center

Telephone: (804) 827-1349

Email: transferinfo@vcu.edu

Transfer Advising Request

VCCS Transfer Planning Checklist


Office of Admissions

Telephone: (804) 828-1222 or (800) 841-3638

Email: ugrad@vcu.edu
Apply Here.

Guaranteed transfer admission requirements

Completion of associate degree
Minimum GPA of 2.5
All courses must be completed with a grade of "C" or better

Degree requirements in Bulletin
Plan of study in Bulletin
Requirements
Highest level of math required
  • Quantitative Foundations requirement only
Science required
  • Natural Sciences requirement only
Foreign language requirements
  • Yes
Additional tuition/fees
  • No
GPA requirements (to progress/graduate in the major)
  • 2.0+ cumulative GPA, 2.0+ major GPA
VCU Major Maps

View VCU Major Map for Philosophy with concentration in Ethics and Public Policy, Philosophy and Law, Philosophy and Science

Transfer major map
Visit majormaps.vcu.edu for the online version with links.
Sponsored by the Office of the Provost
Major map compass icon
2024-2025

Philosophy, Bachelor of Arts

Virginia Community College System (Any AA, AA&S, AS or AFA degree)

MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
Explore Year 1
  • Schedule an appointment with your community college advisor to map out your associate degree course plan.
  • Complete your math and english requirements in your first year.
  • Be prepared for academic challenges and utilize tutoring resources to get ahead.
  • Explore community college financial aid resources and submit the FAFSA on time.
  • Enroll in a SDV student success course.
  • Identify a mentor in a diversity organization.
  • Make friends with people with diverse perspectives and join a cultural or identity-related student organization.
  • Attend diversity-focused events on your community college campus and in your community (e.g., international festival).
  • Create a weekly and monthly budget.
  • Prepare for a career after college by creating a brand for yourself.
  • Develop personal and career goals and create SMART steps for 2-3 "dream jobs."
  • Practice independent living skills such as money and time management, self-care, and personal responsibility.
Experience Year 2
  • Meet with your community college advisor to finalize plans to complete your associate degree.
  • Be prepared for academic challenges. Use tutoring resources to get ahead.
  • Submit a transfer advising request to the VCU Transfer Center.
  • Research scholarship opportunities and explore your eligibility for the Two-Year College Transfer Grant.
  • Explore the concentrations of the philosophy major.
  • Submit the FAFSA on time.
  • Be prepared: Once you enroll at VCU, your VCU GPA will be determined by your grades at VCU.
  • Apply to VCU.
  • Visit the VCU campus and attend a transfer admission session.
  • Research housing options for next year.
  • Attend a talk or other event sponsored by the VCU Philosophy department, consider joining a VCU club, or meeting with VCU students to make professional and personal connections.
  • Consider learning a foreign language to open doors to international organizations and future study.
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Attend VCU cultural events, including the monthly Global Café, VCU Diversity Scholars in Research week, or department-related events.
  • Check out the VCU Office of Multicultural Student Affairs (OMSA) and follow @vcuomsa.
  • Find out about VCU REAL and learn about REAL graduation requirement.
  • Attend Career & Internship Fairs throughout the year.
  • Acquire career related experience (e.g., job, internship, organization involvement).
  • If your GPA is 3.5 or higher, consider applying for the VCU Honors College.
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Conduct informational interviews or shadow someone in a field of career interest.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Explore the types of aid available at VCU.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.

Explore
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
  • Schedule an appointment with your community college advisor to map out your associate degree course plan.
  • Complete your math and english requirements in your first year.
  • Be prepared for academic challenges and utilize tutoring resources to get ahead.
  • Explore community college financial aid resources and submit the FAFSA on time.
  • Enroll in a SDV student success course.
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Identify a mentor in a diversity organization.
  • Make friends with people with diverse perspectives and join a cultural or identity-related student organization.
  • Attend diversity-focused events on your community college campus and in your community (e.g., international festival).
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
  • Create a weekly and monthly budget.
  • Prepare for a career after college by creating a brand for yourself.
  • Develop personal and career goals and create SMART steps for 2-3 "dream jobs."
  • Practice independent living skills such as money and time management, self-care, and personal responsibility.

Experience
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
  • Meet with your community college advisor to finalize plans to complete your associate degree.
  • Be prepared for academic challenges. Use tutoring resources to get ahead.
  • Submit a transfer advising request to the VCU Transfer Center.
  • Research scholarship opportunities and explore your eligibility for the Two-Year College Transfer Grant.
  • Explore the concentrations of the philosophy major.
  • Submit the FAFSA on time.
  • Be prepared: Once you enroll at VCU, your VCU GPA will be determined by your grades at VCU.
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
  • Apply to VCU.
  • Visit the VCU campus and attend a transfer admission session.
  • Research housing options for next year.
  • Attend a talk or other event sponsored by the VCU Philosophy department, consider joining a VCU club, or meeting with VCU students to make professional and personal connections.
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Consider learning a foreign language to open doors to international organizations and future study.
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Attend VCU cultural events, including the monthly Global Café, VCU Diversity Scholars in Research week, or department-related events.
  • Check out the VCU Office of Multicultural Student Affairs (OMSA) and follow @vcuomsa.
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
  • Find out about VCU REAL and learn about REAL graduation requirement.
  • Attend Career & Internship Fairs throughout the year.
  • Acquire career related experience (e.g., job, internship, organization involvement).
  • If your GPA is 3.5 or higher, consider applying for the VCU Honors College.
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Conduct informational interviews or shadow someone in a field of career interest.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Explore the types of aid available at VCU.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.
Recommended courses
Major map compass icon
2024-2025

Philosophy, Bachelor of Arts

Virginia Community College System (Any AA, AA&S, AS or AFA degree)

Virginia Community College System courses
Course Title Equivalent course Credits Requirements
SDV 100 or 101 College Success Skills UNIV 101 1 Elective
ENG 111 College Composition I Note: students with credit for AP English Language and Composition will only receive credit for UNIV 111 at VCU and should take ENG 112 to fulfill the VCU composition requirement. UNIV 111-112 3 General education
ENG 112 College Composition II UNIV 200 3 General education
MTH Any approved MTH course (MTH 154 or MTH 155 recommended) MATH 3 General education
Fine Arts or Literature Select one of the following (UCGS Block II): ART 100, ART 101, ART 102, CST 130, CST 151, MUS 121, MUS 221, MUS 222, MUS 226, ENG 225, ENG 245, ENG 246, ENG 250, ENG 255, ENG 258, ENG 275. VCU equivalent 3 General education
Social science Select one of the following (UCGS Block III): ECO 150, ECO 201, ECO 202, GEO 210, GEO 220, PLS 135, PLS 140, PLS 241, PSY 200, SOC 200, SOC 211, SOC 268. VCU equivalent 3 General education
Lab science Select one of the following (UCGS Block IV): BIO 101, BIO 102, BIO 106, CHM 101, CHM 111, CHM 112, ENV 121, ENV 122, GOL 105, GOL 106, GOL 110, PHY 100, PHY 201, PHY 202, PHY 241, PHY 242. VCU equivalent 4 General education
History Select one of the following (UCGS Block VI): HIS 101, HIS 102, HIS 111, HIS 112, HIS 121, HIS 122. HIST 3 General education
World Language or ASL World Language I or ASL 101 or elective (students are eligible for a waiver of VCU's language requirement if they successfully completed through the third level of a foreign language in high school). VCU equivalent 3 General education
World Language or ASL World Language II or ASL 102 or elective (students are eligible for a waiver of VCU's language requirement if they successfully completed through the third level of a foreign language in high school). VCU equivalent 3 General education
PHI 100 Introduction to Philosophy PHIL 101 3 Major
PHI 220 Ethics PHIL 201 3 Major (Ancillary)
Complete requirements for associate degree VCU equivalents 25 Elective
Community college credits transferred to VCU 60
VCU courses
Course Title Credits Requirements
PHIL 103 Ancient Greek and Medieval Western Philosophy 3 Major
PHIL 104 Modern Western Philosophy 3 Major
PHIL 222 Logic 3 Major
PHIL 490 Seminar in Philosophy 3 Major
Select three of the following with at least one course each from Group A and Group B. Group A: PHIL 320, PHIL 327, PHIL 328, PHIL 335 Group B: PHIL 300, PHIL 301, PHIL 302, PHIL 303, PHIL 304, PHIL 332 Group C: PHIL 391 9 Major
PHIL electives (any level) 3 Major
PHIL elective (300 level or higher) 3 Major
Upper-level electives (300 or 400-level courses): consider a minor or a second major. Note: Students must complete a minimum of 45 upper-level credits to graduate from VCU. 33 Elective
REAL The REAL requirement may be satisfied by successfully completing a 300-level (or higher) course that has received a REAL attribute of Level 2, 3 or 4 or through an approved “REAL” co-curricular experience that has received a REAL attribute of Level 3 or 4. See VCU advisor for options. 0 Major
Credits completed at VCU 60
Minimum credits required for bachelor's degree 120