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The University of Rochester's Philosophy Department places its PhD program at the heart of its academic community. With an intimate cohort size (around 10 faculty members and 20 doctoral candidates), students enjoy close mentorship while engaging in graduate seminars, semesterly reading groups, and substantial independent research with professors. Doctoral candidates gain teaching experience as teaching assistants and may lead their own courses.
Faculty specialties cover diverse philosophical domains including epistemology, ethics, philosophical history, logic, mathematics philosophy, metaphysics, language philosophy, mind philosophy, religion philosophy, and socio-political philosophy. Our ethics scholars focus on normative theory, bioethics, metaethics, and AI ethics.
The doctoral program mandates 90 course credits plus a philosophical dissertation, structured for completion within five years. Our faculty bring wide-ranging philosophical expertise and varied theoretical approaches.
We prioritize preparing graduates for academic research and instruction. The department collaborates with computer science, cognitive science, and linguistics programs for interdisciplinary cognitive science studies.