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Philosophy

Overview Degrees/Certificates Courses Faculty

Associate Degree for Transfer

A.A.-T. in Philosophy

This program provides lower-division preparation for students interested in transferring into baccalaureate philosophy programs.

The Associate in Arts degree in Philosophy for Transfer provides students with a major that fulfills the general requirements of the California State University for transfer. Students with this degree will receive priority admission with junior status to the California State University system. The Associate in Arts degree in Philosophy for Transfer (AA-T) may be obtained by the completion of 60 transferable, semester units with a minimum 2.0 GPA, including (a) the major or area of emphasis described in the Required Program outlined below (earning a C or better in these courses) and (b) either the Inter-segmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) or the California State University General Education Breadth Requirements.

Catalog Date: January 1, 2025

Degree Requirements

Course Code Course Title Units
PHIL 300 Introduction to Philosophy 3
PHIL 310 Introduction to Ethics 3
PHIL 320 Logic and Critical Reasoning 3
PHIL 324 Symbolic Logic (3) 3
   or MATH 320 Symbolic Logic (3)
A minimum of 6 units from the following: 6
Select 3 units from Philosophy Electives and 3 units from either Philosophy Electives or Humanities Electives.
Philosophy Electives
PHIL 315 Contemporary Moral Issues (3)
PHIL 330 History of Classical Philosophy (3)
PHIL 331 History of Modern Philosophy (3)
PHIL 350 Philosophy of Religion (3)
PHIL 360 Social/Political Philosophy (3)
Humanities Electives
ENGLT 310 English Literature I (3)
ENGLT 311 English Literature II (3)
ENGLT 320 American Literature I (3)
ENGLT 321 American Literature II (3)
ENGLT 340 World Literature I (3)
ENGLT 341 World Literature II (3)
HIST 300 History of Europe and the Mediterranean to 1500 (3)
HIST 302 History of Europe Since 1500 (3)
HIST 305 Women in Western Civilization (3)
HIST 307 History of World Civilizations to 1500 (3)
HIST 308 History of World Civilizations, 1500 to Present (3)
HIST 340 History of California through 1879 (3)
HIST 341 History of California: 1879 to Present (3)
HIST 364 Asian Civilization (3)
HIST 365 Asian Civilization (3)
HIST 367 History of Russia (3)
HIST 373 History of Mexico (3)
HIST 480 History of Western Civilization - Honors (3)
HIST 481 History of Western Civilization - Honors (3)
HUM 301 Introduction to the Humanities (3)
HUM 310 Modern Humanities (3)
HUM 320 Asian Humanities (3)
HUM 326 Middle Eastern Humanities (3)
HUM 330 Humanities of the Americas (3)
RLST 301 Introduction to World Religions (3)
RLST 302 Introduction to Atheism (3)
RLST 310 Introduction to the Hebrew Bible (3)
RLST 311 Introduction to the New Testament (3)
Total Units: 18

The Associate in Arts in Philosophy for Transfer (AA-T) degree may be obtained by completion of 60 transferable, semester units with a minimum overall grade point average (GPA) of 2.0, including (a) a minimum grade of "C" (or "P") for each course in the major or area of emphasis described in the Required Program, and (b) either the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) or the California State University General Education-Breadth Requirements.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this program, the student will be able to:

  • identify and express arguments found in philosophical and non-philosophical sources.
  • analyze arguments from philosophical and non-philosophical sources into their constituent premises and conclusions.
  • evaluate the cogency of arguments from philosophical and non-philosophical sources with respect to structure and content.
  • critically discuss and evaluate important concepts and theories in ethics, metaphysics, and epistemology.
  • develop and defend personal views concerning important philosophical issues.

Career Information

Because of continuing social and technological changes, today's graduates are more likely to change their jobs/careers than ever before. Job skills learned today for a specific career may be too specific to transfer to other jobs or simply become outdated. The technical skills and knowledge required by many fields are also changing, requiring constant updating to stay current. One advantage to studying philosophy is that it focuses on broader issues such as the nature of knowledge, values, the use of language, and the application of logic and critical reasoning: content that transfers across specific jobs/careers. The analytic skills developed in the study of philosophy are valuable in problem solving and effectively communicating ideas clearly and precisely. Finally, philosophy provides an excellent pre-law preparation, as philosophy majors generally score amongst the highest on the LSAT (Law School Admission Test).