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THE JOB MARKET WELCOMES PHILOSOPHY MAJORS!

This page is available in one column for easier printing. Please click on http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/jobsphilosophyprint.htm

Topics covered in this page, linked as follows:

Careers and Jobs

Grad School Admissions Exams

Publishing Papers in Undergraduate Journals

Undergraduate Conferences

Academic Jobs

Graduate Programs in Philosophy and Religious Studies in the Southeastern United States

Philosophy and Religious Studies Email Lists

Check out this Powerpoint presentation about careers in Philosophy (works best with Internet Explorer): http://teach.valdosta.edu/chjames/philpre_files/frame.htm

Scroll down for a variety of information on specific careers and advice on how to prepare as a Philosophy Major! 

Here are two other recommended sites with career ideas!

http://www.louisiana.edu/Academic/LiberalArts/PHIL/WhyStudyPhilosophy.html

Another source for philosophy information:

http://qanda.encyclopedia.com/question/best-philosophy-resources-222838.html 

Websites with information about Religious Studies careers:

http://www.jcu.edu/religion/ (check the pulldown menu for Careers in Religious Studies!) See also StudyReligion.org at  http://www.studyreligion.org/why/index.html

Here are two recent articles on the growing numbers of Philosophy majors in the United States:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/06/education/06philosophy.html

http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/50-ways-to-improve-your-life/2008/12/18/learn-philosophy.html

Here's an article from People magazine about popular philosophy books!  Here's list of famous people who majored in Philosophy or Religious Studies.  Also, do you remember MTV's former v.j. Kennedy? She's a Philosophy Major too.

Here are two new magazine articles related to Philosophy and Religious Studies: Seventeen magazine's January 2003 issue recommended that majoring in liberal arts fields like Philosophy and Religious Studies is excellent preparation for work in business and marketing.

Philosophy is a great major because it gives you the skills employers want most:

·An ability to think critically and objectively

·An ability to write clearly and effectively

·An ability to present your case convincingly

·An ability to organize material with attention to detail and a pleasing style

·An ability to analyze policies for fairness and accuracy

·A keen awareness of political issues and all sides of disagreements

·An ability to develop creative solutions to unique situations

Here is a list of 12 careers and jobs that Philosophy Majors can do! 

Teaching. Majoring in Philosophy gives you communication skills as well as a solid understanding of learning itself, which also can make you a highly effective teacher.

Creative writing. Philosophy and Logic/Argumentation can prepare you for a career as a novelist, a non-fiction writer, or a poet.

Technical Writing. This is one of the biggest growth areas for Philosophy/Philosophy of Science/Ethics majors. Technical writers can demand starting salaries averaging $37,000 on today's market.   (For more information on Philosophy and Writing see this page from the University of South Carolina: http://www.cas.sc.edu/phil/ugradhdbk.php )

Executive-level administration and management. Many Fortune 500 CEO's have degrees in liberal arts majors like Philosophy, because these majors develop your  interpersonal communication and organization.

Editing and Publishing. These fields require a strong facility with language, combined with the communication skills Philosophy majors develop.

Law. Many lawyers got their undergraduate training in Philosophy, because the skills involved in reading and thinking clearly and arguing effectively apply to brief-writing as well as litigation techniques. Logic, Business Ethics and Health Care Ethics will be especially helpful for you. 

Mediation. Philosophy majors' skills at communicating and analyzing all sides of issues make them ideal mediators (for example, mediators are used in divorce cases, or to settle disputes between unions and corporations.)

Public relations and journalism. PR and journalism both require a careful use of language - something Philosophy majors learn quickly.

Philosophical Counseling/Philosophical Practice. Did you know that not all counselors and therapists study psychology? The American Philosophical Practitioners Association (APPA) trains and certifies philosophy majors to do work similar to psychiatry and psychoanalysis, and is now beginning to build and accredit graduate programs in philosophical practice. The City College of New York has approved the establishment of an M.A. Program in Applied Philosophy, whose graduates will also be APPA-Certified. Similar initiatives are underway internationally. The APPA's website is http://www.appa.edu

Enjoy computers?  Software Creation, Ontological Engineering, Axiomatizing, Language Development, Systems Engineering. CYCORP is one of many software companies that routinely hires Philosophy Majors!  http://www.cyc.com/cyc/company/employment  Cycorp does programming in a way that uses common-sense logic. Their system is called Cyc® technology, and it is rooted in the logical thinking that philosophy classes in logic and argumentation study: semantic information retrieval, consistency-checking of structured information, deductive integration of databases, and natural language interfaces that relate to how people express themselves in an everyday sense.  (For more information on Graduate School work in Philosophy and Computers, see this page from the APA: http://www.apaonline.org/publications/newsletters/v08n1_Computers_index.aspx  )

Enjoy Ethics and Social and Political Philosophy? Nonprofit organizations and governmental organizations hire philosophy majors for their experience setting policies on the environment, the arts, education, health, the sciences, and culture. The Red Cross http://www.redcross.org/ , the World Health Organization http://www.who.int/en/ , Greenpeace http://www.greenpeace.org/homepage/ , the National Endowment for the Humanities http://www.neh.gov/ , and the National Sciences Foundation http://www.nsf.gov/ are just a few examples.

Enjoy Aesthetics? Philosophy prepares you to be an archivist, curator, or museum manager -- the philosophy major's appreciation for aesthetic taste, as well as organizational skills, means you have the right balance for a career in these art management fields!

(Most of these careers only require a BA in Philosophy. Our department also has information about internships for specific careers. Special two-year MA programs are especially helpful for careers in Philosophical Counseling and Ethics Consulting.)

Here are some helpful links to graduate programs in Philosophy and Religious Studies in the Southeastern United States:

Florida State University: Philosophy  http://www.fsu.edu/~philo/

Florida State University: Religious Studies (Department of Religion)  http://www.religion.fsu.edu/Pages/default.aspx

University of Georgia: Philosophy  http://www.phil.uga.edu/

University of Georgia: Religious Studies (Department of Religion)  http://www.uga.edu/religion/

Georgia State University: Masters Program in Philosophy http://www2.gsu.edu/~wwwphi/index.html

University of South Carolina: Philosophy  http://www.cas.sc.edu/phil/index.php

University of South Carolina: Religious Studies http://www.cla.sc.edu/RELG/