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Students of Philosophy are better prepared to meet the many challenges of our modern world. Our major is designed either as a stand-alone degree, or to be easily combined with another field of study. Philosophy is unique in that it teaches you skills which are transferrable and will enhance your ability to succeed in a wide variety of careers because the practice of Philosophy helps you master abilities that other majors simply do not teach, which are always in demand, and can help in all aspects of your life.
Consistently ranked as a top attribute employers desire, students of Philosophy are exceptional in their capability to understand complex ideas, evaluate issues that have no clear answer, and create novel and effective solutions to challenging problems. Studying Philosophy makes you better at answering questions which can’t be answered with a search engine!
Because Philosophy focuses on argumentation as our method of discovery, Philosophy students can expect to become proficient in the art of persuasion. Constructing compelling reasons for one’s position, being able to express those ideas clearly and logically, and understanding the impact that values have on people’s beliefs all contribute to this vital skill. Anyone who works with other people will appreciate having persuasive ability.
Thanks to the Internet, access to information is no longer an issue for our society – the issue is how to make effective use of all that information. Some is relevant and useful, much is not. Students of Philosophy learn how to tell the difference by understanding how claims are connected to each other and by identifying the kinds of assumptions that positions rest upon. Synthesizing that information into a clear, coherent, insightful, balanced, and compelling written form is a hallmark of philosophical study, and is a skill consistently sought after by employers.
Because studying Philosophy makes you better at questioning and understanding the foundational claims of any system of beliefs, combining Philosophy with other disciplines will allow you to address the problems of that discipline with a perspective that others will lack. When you think of the exceptional names in any field of study, it is likely you know their name because they somehow changed the way people thought about that field. They questioned what nobody else was questioning, or they understood the same information everyone else knew in a novel way – in short, they were doing good Philosophy!
Are you considering continuing your education beyond your undergraduate degree? If so, Philosophy may your best ticket to success. Philosophy majors score the highest of all majors on the LSAT (law school) and the GRE (most academic graduate programs), and even score quite well on the GMAT (business degree). This is likely because of the generality, power, and adaptability of the skills one acquires as a Philosophy student.
Finally, because Philosophy asks, and genuinely tries to answer, the “big questions”, students of Philosophy are more able to grapple with those vital issues which define the broad outlines of our lives outside of our careers. Being a good person, how to be happy, living a life of meaning, shaping the society in which we live, making decisions which are beneficial for yourself and those you care about – Philosophy can help you address these challenges with a clear mind and a foundation of understanding.