Philosophy

Much of the teaching takes the form of lectures, with additional classes for some subjects (such as first-year Logic).

You have weekly supervisions, for each of which you’re given topical reading and asked to write an essay which you then discuss with your supervisor. Although it varies throughout the year, each week you typically have between six and 12 lectures, and between one and three supervisions and/or small classes.

Assessment is predominantly by written examinations. However, in Parts IB and II one written examination can be substituted with two extended essays of 3,000-4,000 words. Part II offers the additional alternative of submitting a dissertation of 6,000-8,000 words on a subject of your choice.

The course is designed to accommodate the many students studying philosophy for the first time.

In the first year, you acquire the reasoning skills that enable you to tackle philosophical problems and to think intelligently about abstract questions generally, not just gather information about who said what. Therefore, you’re encouraged to approach topics in your own way and we organise regular discussion groups for first- and second-year students.

Part IA gives you an introduction to philosophy through the study of four core compulsory papers:

• Metaphysics and Philosophy of Mind
• Ethics and Political Philosophy
• Logic
• Set Texts, such as Plato’s Meno, Descartes’ Meditations on First Philosophy and J S Mill’s On Liberty and The Subjection of Women

Years 2 and 3 focus on areas that particularly interest you. Part IB is about exploring the philosophical aspects of a range of issues, both practical and theoretical.

There are two compulsory papers:

• Metaphysics and Epistemology
• Logic

You then choose two further subjects from:

• Ethics
• Greek and Roman Philosophy (from Classics)
• Early Modern Philosophy
• Philosophy of Science
• Political Philosophy
• Experimental Psychology (from Natural Sciences, involving practical work)

Our objective in Part II is to provide you with an understanding of various contemporary debates and to familiarise you with current philosophical concepts. Lectures explore current and new positions on debates, and you participate in seminar discussions on advanced subjects.

There are no compulsory papers and you choose four from an extensive range of subjects. These include most of those mentioned above, studied at a more advanced level, as well as several papers covering new areas. Papers recently available include:

• European Philosophy from Kant
• Mathematical Logic
• Philosophical Logic
• Aesthetics
• Philosophy in the Long Middle Ages

In addition, there may be a Special Subject which changes from time to time (for 2015-16, the Special Subject is Wittgenstein). It’s also possible to take one or two papers from another course, such as Classics or Theology, Religion, and Philosophy of Religion.

For further information about studying Philosophy at the University of Cambridge see the Faculty of Philosophy website.