Minor in Philosophy for Social Change
Catalog Year: 2025-2026
Banner Code: PHSC
This minor allows students interested in social justice to gain conceptual tools and analytical methods drawn from courses in philosophy, and students interested in philosophy to see how a philosophical grounding is relevant to questions of justice and processes of social change. Students will take courses providing them with skills of ethical and critical reasoning, an understanding of the philosophical underpinnings of modern Western society that structure many of the social justice issues we confront today, and a grounding in social and political theory. They will have the opportunity to select courses that focus on such topics as race, gender, environmental justice, immigration, genocide, mass incarceration, disability, or health justice, as well as to add an interdisciplinary and experiential learning component to their studies.
The University Catalog is the authoritative source for information on program requirements and courses. The Schedule of Classes is the authoritative source for information on classes scheduled for this semester. See the Schedule for the most up-to-date information and see Patriot web to register for classes. Requirements may be different for earlier catalog years. See the University Catalog archives.
Policies
Eight credits of coursework must be unique to the minor and students must earn a minimum grade of 2.00 in all courses applied to the minor. No course may be used to fulfill more than one requirement.
For policies governing all minors, see AP.5.3.4 Minors.
Minor Requirements
Total credits: 18
Students should be aware of the specific policies associated with this program, located on the Admissions & Policies tab.
Core Courses
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| PHIL 151 | Introduction to Ethics | 3 |
| PHIL 303 | History of Western Philosophy: Modern | 3 |
| or PHIL 324 | Modern Western Political Theory | |
| PHIL 429 | Advanced Topics in Social and Political Philosophy | 3 |
| Total Credits | 9 | |
Electives
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Other applicable courses may fulfill elective requirement with prior approval of the Philosophy Department | ||
| Choose one of the following: | 3 | |
| Contemporary Western Political Theory | ||
| Theories of Justice | ||
| Philosophy of the Social Sciences | ||
| Choose one of the following: | 3 | |
| Philosophy after Auschwitz | ||
| Philosophy, Race, and Gender | ||
| Topics in Environmental Philosophy (Mason Core) | ||
| Ethical Issues in Global Health | ||
| Total Credits | 6 | |
Interdisciplinary and Experiential Learning Requirement
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Choose one of the following: | 3 | |
| Special Topics in African and African American Studies | ||
| Global Experiential Learning | ||
| Experiential Learning | ||
| Research for Social Change (Mason Core) | ||
| Philosophy Internship | ||
| Experiential Learning in Women and Gender Studies | ||
| Topics in Global Affairs (when project topic is appropriate, with prior approval of Philosophy Department) | ||
|
Other course with prior approval of Philosophy Department
|
||
| Total Credits | 3 | |