The Special Program in Philosophy and Literary Thought enables students to combine interests in philosophy and literary studies. Interested students should see the Director of Undergraduate Studies of Philosophy and the Program Director of the Philosophy and Literature initiative to receive advising about course planning.

This field of study is declared on Axess and is printed on the transcript. The special track requires at least 65 units, and it consists of three main parts: a) core requirements in Philosophy (requirements 1, 4, and 6 below), b) a dedicated program of study in a single national literature, approved by the Program Director for Philosophy and Literature (requirement 3 below), and c) a group of courses exploring the interdisciplinary connections between philosophy and literature (requirements 2, 5, and 7 below). Students are encouraged to do honors work with an emphasis on philosophy and literature through the Philosophy honors program. (See the description of the honors thesis in Philosophy and consult advisers for further information.)

Requirements:

Core requirements for the major in Philosophy, including:
1. An introductory course
2. course - Mind, Matter, and Meaning
3. the core distribution requirements listed in section 1b of the general program above.
4. All courses taken for a letter grade in fulfillment of the philosophy core requirements (under 1., above) must be taken for a minimum of 3 units and completed with a grade of 'C-' or higher.
Gateway course in philosophy and literature (course -Philosophy and Literature). This course should be taken as early as possible in the student's career, normally in the sophomore year.
Three courses in a single national literature, chosen by the student in consultation both with the adviser and with the director of undergraduate studies for Philosophy and Literature. In cases where a national literature department or program has a required or recommended three-course sequence, the student should normally take that sequence. In cases where the national literature is not in English, this normally involves meeting the language proficiency requirements of the relevant department.
Electives within Philosophy beyond the core requirements totaling at least 5 units, and drawn from courses numbered 100 or higher.
Two upper division courses of special relevance to the study of philosophy and literature, as identified by the committee in charge of the program. A list of approved courses is available from the program director of undergraduate studies, and is published on the web at https://philit.stanford.edu/undergraduates/undergraduate-special-relevance-courses
Capstone seminar in the PHIL 194 series.
Capstone seminar of relevance to the study of philosophy and literature, as approved by the program committee. In some cases, with approval of the Philosophy Director of Undergraduate Study and the Philosophy and Literature Director of Undergraduate Studies, the same course may be used to meet requirements 6 and 7 simultaneously.

The following rules also apply to the special option:

Units for Honors Tutorial, Directed Reading (course Tutorial, Senior Year, course Individual Work, Undergraduate, course The Dualist), The Dualist (course The Dualist), Honors Seminar (course Seminar for Prospective Honors Students) may not be counted toward the 65-unit requirement. No more than 10 units with a grade of 'satisfactory' or 'credit' may be counted toward the unit requirement.
A maximum of 15 transfer units may be counted toward the major, at most 10 of which may substitute for courses within Philosophy. Transfer credits may not substitute for course or course, and are approved as substitutes for the five area requirements or PHIL 194 series only in exceptional cases.
Courses offered in other departments may be counted toward requirements 3, 5 and 7, but such courses, including affiliated courses, do not generally count toward the other requirements. In particular, such courses may not satisfy requirement 4.
Units devoted to meeting the language requirement are not counted toward the 65-unit requirement.

PHILO-BA - Philosophy (BA)

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Overview

Program Policies

Learning Outcomes

External Credit Policies