Philosophy
- What kind of world do we live in?
- Is there a God?
- Is there an external world?
- What kind of life should we live?
- Do human beings act freely?
- Where do moral obligations come from?
- How do we construct a just society?
- Where does knowledge come from and what are the limitations of our knowledge?
- Do the results of quantum mechanics force us to view our relations to objects differently?
- Do animals have rights?
- What is the justification for using military force?
- Is euthanasia morally wrong?
- What kind of research ethics should medical professionals observe in their research?
Curriculum Structure
To graduate, students must complete two categories of requirements, totaling at least 128 Academic Units (AUs):
A. Major Requirements (66 AUs)
B. Interdisciplinary Collaborative Core (ICC)
- Common Core (17 AUs)
- Foundational Core (10 AUs)
C. Broadening & Deepening Electives (35 AUs)
Curriculum Structure | AY2024-2025 Intake | ||||||
A. Major Requirements | B. Interdisciplinary Collaborative Core (ICC) | C. Broadening & Deepening Electives (BDE) | Total (AUs) | |||
Core | Prescribed Electives | FYP or Two HY4000 level courses | Common Cores | Foundational Cores | ||
22 | 36 | 8 | 17 | 10 | 35 | 128 |
Duration of study
The curriculum is designed as a four-year course. Well-prepared students can complete the degree in three and a half years.
A. MAJOR REQUIREMENTS (66 AUs)
The requirements for a Philosophy major consist of 3 components:
A1. Philosophy Core Courses (22 AUs)
A2. Philosophy Prescribed Electives (36 AUs)
A3. Graduation Project (FYP) or 2 HY4000 level courses (8 AUs)
(The two HY4000 level courses are for those who are not eligible to do FYP.)
A1. Philosophy Core (Compulsory) Courses (22 AUs)
Course Code and Title | AUs |
HY1001 Introduction to Philosophy | 3 |
HY1002 Symbolic Logic (Previous title - Logic and Paradoxes) | 4 |
HY2002 Moral Philosophy | 3 |
HY2003 Introduction to Chinese Philosophy | 3 |
HY2005 Political Philosophy (Previous title - Justice, Society, and the State) OR HY2010 Ancient Philosophy (Previous title - Ancient Philosophy: The Examined Life) | 3 |
HY2012 Early Modern Philosophy (Previous title - Modern Philosophy: Reason and Experience) OR HY3011 Philosophy of Mind (Previous title - Minds and Machines) | 3 |
HY3010 Philosophy of Science OR HY3012 Philosophy of Technology OR HY3018 Epistemology | 3 |
- Philosophy major must take ONE of HY2005 Political Philosophy OR HY2010 Ancient Philosophy
- Philosophy major must take ONE of HY2012 Early Modern Philosophy OR HY3011 Philosophy of Mind
- Philosophy major must take ONE of HY3010 Philosophy of Science OR HY3012 Philosophy of Technology OR HY3018 Epistemology
A2. Philosophy Prescribed Electives Courses (36 AUs)
Category A: Prescribed Electives | ||
---|---|---|
Choose 7 courses – At least FOUR (4) from HY4000 level courses | AUs | |
HY2008 | Environmental Ethics | 3 |
HY2015 | Philosophy of Well-Being | 3 |
HY2016 | Friendship | 3 |
HY2025 | Medical Ethics | 3 |
HY2026 | Business Ethics | 3 |
HY2027 | Popular Culture and Philosophy | 3 |
HY2028 | Food Ethics | 3 |
HY2903 | Introduction to Chinese Philosophy | 3 |
HY2905 | Political Philosophy | 3 |
HY2910 | Ancient Philosophy | 3 |
HY2912 | Early Modern Philosophy | 3 |
HY3001 | Existentialism | 3 |
HY3002 | Philosophy of Medicine | 3 |
HY3003 | World Religions | 3 |
HY3004 | Reason and Faith | 3 |
HY3014 | 19th Century Continental Philosophy | 3 |
HY3015 | 20th Century Continental Philosophy | 3 |
HY3019 | Consequentialism | 3 |
HY3020 | Deontology | 3 |
HY3021 | Philosophy of Race and Gender | 3 |
HY3022 | Comparative Philosophy: East and West | 3 |
HY3024 | Virtue Ethics | 3 |
HY3025 | Philosophy and Literature | 3 |
HY3910 | Philosophy of Science | 3 |
HY3911 | Philosophy of Mind | 3 |
HY3912 | Philosophy of Technology | 3 |
HY3918 | Epistemology | 3 |
HY4002 | Knowledge and Reality | 4 |
HY4003 | Advanced Epistemology | 4 |
HY4005 | History of Analytic Philosophy | 4 |
HY4006 | Philosophy of Physics | 4 |
HY4007 | Aesthetics | 4 |
HY4008 | Advanced Moral Philosophy | 4 |
HY4009 | Value Theory | 4 |
HY4010 | Neo-Confucianism | 4 |
HY4011 | Moral Psychology | 4 |
HY4013 | Language and Being | 4 |
HY4015 | Philosophical Methodologies | 4 |
HY4021 | Practical Rationality | 4 |
HY4023 | Metaethics | 4 |
HY4024 | Metaphysics | 4 |
HY4025 | Ethics and Public Policy | 4 |
HY4026 | Social Epistemology | 4 |
HY4027 | Perception | 4 |
HY4037 | Kant | 4 |
HY4038 | Science, Technology, and Lifeworld | 4 |
HY4110 | Special Topics in Philosophy of Science | 4 |
HY4111 | Special Topics in Ethics | 4 |
HY4112 | Special Topics in Philosophy | 4 |
HY4113 | Special Topics in Chinese Philosophy | 4 |
HY4114 | Special Topics in Logic | 4 |
HY4116 | Phenomenology | 4 |
HY4118 | Independent Study I | 4 |
HY4119 | Independent Study II | 4 |
HY4120 | Special Topics in Philosophy of Science II | 4 |
HY4121 | Special Topics in Ethics II | 4 |
HY4122 | Special Topics in Philosophy II | 4 |
HY4123 | Special Topics in Chinese Philosophy II | 4 |
HY4124 | Special Topics in Logic II | 4 |
HY4130 | Special Topics in Philosophy of Science III | 4 |
HY4131 | Special Topics in Ethics III | 4 |
HY4132 | Special Topics in Philosophy III | 4 |
HY4133 | Special Topics in Chinese Philosophy III | 4 |
HY4134 | Philosophical Issues of Confucianism | 4 |
Category B: Interdisciplinary Prescribed Electives | ||
Choose 4 courses | AUs | |
HC3002 | History of Chinese Thought | 3 |
HA1001 | Introduction to International Relations and Foreign Policy | 3 |
HA1002 | Introduction to Political Theory | 3 |
HA2005 | Contemporary Political Theory | 3 |
HA2011 | Cost-Benefit Analysis in Public Policy | 3 |
HA3001 | Political Analysis of Public Policy | 3 |
HA3020 | Justice | 3 |
HA3022 | The Origins of Modern Political Theory | 3 |
HA4013 | Advanced Topics in Democratic Theory: Democracy & Division | 4 |
HA4019 | Methods in Political Theory | 4 |
HA4033 | Political Theory and Psychoanalysis | 4 |
HA4041 | Film & Political Theory | 4 |
HG1001 | Mind and Meaning | 3 |
HG2002 | Semantics and Pragmatics | 3 |
HG2012 | Cognitive Linguistics | 3 |
HG2023 | Language and Gender | 3 |
HG4011 | Language and the Brain | 4 |
HG4015 | Psycholinguistics | 4 |
HG4044 | Language Evolution | 4 |
HH1002 | Asia-Pacific in Global History: Pre-1800 | 3 |
HH2007 | Health and Illness in History | 3 |
HH2021 | Race, Gender, Class and Colonial Power | 3 |
HH3013 | Comparative History of Race Science | 3 |
HH3016 | History of Madness | 3 |
HH3032 | Science and Religion in History | 3 |
HH4005 | Culture and Heritage: Perspectives from History | 4 |
HL1001 | Introduction to the Study of Literature | 3 |
HL2006 | Modernism | 3 |
HL2007 | Contemporary Literature and Culture | 3 |
HL2024 | Approaches to Literature | 3 |
HL3001 | Film Theory | 3 |
HL3002 | Film, Politics, and Ethics | 3 |
HL3003 | Film & Literature | 3 |
HL3012 | The Discourse of Love | 3 |
HL3016 | Gender and Sexuality Studies | 3 |
HL3038 | Theatre of the Absurd | 3 |
HL4010 | Feminist Studies | 4 |
HL4028 | Science and Literature | 4 |
HL4042 | Being Human in Film and Literature | 4 |
HL4043 | Postmodernism | 4 |
HP2600 | Cognitive Psychology | 3 |
HP3201 | Evolutionary Psychology | 3 |
HP3402 | Social Cognition | 3 |
HP3601 | Human Memory | 3 |
HP3901 | Cultural Psychology | 3 |
HS1001 | Person and Society | 3 |
HS1003 | Social Problems in a Global Context | 3 |
HS2003 | Economy and Society | 3 |
HS2004 | Culture, Self, and Identity | 3 |
HS2019 | Sociology of Science and Technology | 3 |
HS3011 | Power, Politics and the State | 3 |
MH1300 | Foundations of Mathematics | 4 |
MH2500 | Probability and Introduction to Statistics | 4 |
PH2101 | Quantum Mechanics I | 3 |
PH3101 | Quantum Mechanics II | 3 |
A3: HY4099 Graduation Project (FYP) or TWO (2) HY4000 level courses (8 AUs)
You can find more information about FYP here. FYP is compulsory for students with a CGPA of 3.90 and above. Those within holding band of 3.75 - 3.89 are allowed to opt-in to do FYP. Students who are not eligible for FYP must read TWO (2) additional HY4000 level courses to fulfil the 8 AUs requirement. To obtain a Honours (Highest Distinction) or Honours (Distinction), students have to read and complete FYP.
B. OTHER REQUIREMENTS (62 AUs)
- ICC-Common Core (17 AUs)
Course Title | AUs |
Inquiry and Communication in an Interdisciplinary World | 2 |
Navigating the Digital World | 2 |
Ethics & Civics in a Multi-Cultural World | 2 |
Career and Entrepreneurial Development for the Future World | 2 |
Science & Technology for Humanity | 3 |
Sustainability: Society, Economy & Environment | 3 |
Healthy Living & Well-being | 3 |
- ICC-Foundational Core (10 AUs)
Course Title | AUs |
Effective Communication II | 2 |
Digital Literacy II | 3 |
Internship | 5 |
- Broadening & Deepening Electives (35 AUs)
There are no restrictions on the selection of courses to make up broadening & deepening electives. Students can choose any of the following:
- Complete a 2nd Major.
- Complete a Minor in another discipline.
- Earn AUs under an International Exchange programme.
- Any course offered by any School as long as the pre-requisites are satisfied.