Graduate Course Descriptions

Below is a list of upcoming graduate courses with full descriptions and other specific information. Below that is a list of all graduate-level courses offered by the Department. A full listing of graduate level courses is also available at the OSU Course Catalog. For a complete listing of courses offered in recent, current, and upcoming semesters, see the OSU Master Schedule.

Upcoming Graduate Courses

Spring Semester 2027

5230 Studies in 17th-Century Philosophy
Instructor: Lisa Downing
TR 3:55-5:15

Course Description TBA.

5400 Advanced Political and Social Philosophy
Instructor: Sahar Heydari Fard
TR 9:35-10:55

How do societies become stable, and how do they change? Is stability a morally significant feature of a society worth protecting? If so, how does it compare to our obligation to resist injustice and oppression? Often, those concerned with social stability underestimate the need for change, and those focused on change overlook the conditions that make a stable, cooperative social order possible. The goal of this class is to put these groups in conversation. We will use basic tools from game theory to help clarify the philosophical disagreements between the two. We will start with the classics like Hobbes, Hume, Rousseau, Kant, and Rawls, along with more contemporary thinkers on the topic, especially on the idea of social movements and contentious politics.

5500 Advanced Symbolic Logic
Instructor: Neil Tennant
TR 11:10-12:30

This course covers the metatheory of first-order logics and languages. It studies systems of natural deduction (and associated sequent calculi) for propositional and predicate logic, and relates these to appropriate kinds of formal semantics, via soundness and completeness theorems. Other philosophically and foundationally important results expose the fundamental tension between expressive power and deductive power in any language for mathematics; the existence of countable models for any consistent first-order theory; and the reducibility in principle of all of mathematics to a theory of sets that is based on first-order axioms that govern a single binary relation.

5750 Advanced Theory of Knowledge
Instructor: Abe Roth
WF 11:10-12:30

The main focus of the course will be on epistemic issues as they arise in social situations where individuals relate to one another and with institutions. We will look at some literature on the epistemology of groups and the normativity of conversation. A concern will be to reconcile practical and moral considerations regarding how to act with epistemic norms concerned with knowledge and truth. Recent literature in epistemology speaks of wronging, injustice, and accountability to one another. To what extent can properly epistemic sense be made of these notions? Or do they inevitably reflect a compromising of epistemic standards, something that must be done to get on with our (social) lives?

7080 Engineering Ethics
Instructor: Eden Lin
M 11:30-12:25

Equip engineering grad students with skills for resolving moral issues that may arise in professional contexts. Includes an introduction to ethics, followed by contemporary issues in engineering ethics, such as the nature and moral status of technology; responsibility; privacy; honesty and integrity, safety and risk; environmental ethics; and the ethics of artificial intelligence.

8001 Graduate Training Seminar
Instructor: Chris Pincock
TBA

8200 Seminar in the History of Philosophy
Instructor: Lisa Shabel
F 12:40-3:25

This will be a seminar on Euclid, Kant, and the history of philosophy of mathematics. We will study selections from Euclid’s Elements and Kant’s critical philosophy in order to understand how and why Kant took Euclid’s geometry to be the paradigm of mathematical reasoning and a model for the synthetic a priori. We will discuss the role of diagrams and “intuition" in mathematical reasoning; the constructibility of mathematical “concepts"; the axiomatic method; and the ontology and epistemology of mathematics, all from a Kantian point of view. Most of the reading will be primary texts, but we will also explore some secondary literature on Euclid and Kant.

8300 Seminar in Value Seminar
Instructor: Tristram McPherson
T 12:40-3:25

Course description coming soon.

8650 Philosophy of Science: Scientific Laws
Instructor: Chris Pincock
W 2:00-4:25p

Scientists often talk about laws such as Newton’s law of universal gravitation, Mendel’s laws for genetics and economic laws of supply and demand. In this seminar we will consider how laws might be important to science along with some of the most influential philosophical accounts of what makes something a law. Some argue that laws have a special kind of subject-matter such as universals and their relationships, while others maintain that it is better to identify laws through a special kind of necessity. A third, influential account of a different sort is David Lewis’ Humean analysis of laws that identifies laws in terms of a special sort of description of local, contingent matters of fact. We will study authors such as David Armstrong, Helen Demerest, Marc Lange, David Lewis, Jenann Ismael, Barbara Vetter.

8800 Seminar in Philosophy of Mind
Instructor: Abe Roth
R 12:40-3:25

Anscombe and Davidson, for better or for worse, had an immense influence on the development of contemporary action theory. The seminar starts with a look at some key elements of their respective views about individual agency, such as Anscombe’s controversial knowledge in intention claim, or the thesis held by both that intentional action is to be characterized in terms of reasons explanation. We’ll also consider highlights of subsequent developments, including the distinctive role of intention in decision and planning, and the connection between identification and agency. We then turn to the question of shared agency – of what it is to act with another, perhaps as part of a group or within an institution. We’ll consider whether theorizing about shared agency prompts some reconsideration of the understanding of human agency that emerged from a focus on the individual case.

Readings include pieces by Anscombe, Davidson, Grice, Harman, Wilson, Korsgaard, Frankfurt, Watson, Velleman, Bratman, Gilbert, Searle, Rödl, and others.

8999 Dissertation Seminar
Instructor: Richard Samuels
M 9:00am-11:45am

Research for dissertation purposes only.

Complete Listing of Philosophy Graduate Courses

5010S Teaching Philosophy
3 Credit Hours

Design a set of philosophy lessons and team-teach some of these lessons to secondary school students.

5210 (601.03)--Ancient Philosophy: Studies in Ancient Philosophy
3 Credit Hours

Variable content; special topics in ancient Greek philosophy, including value theory, logic, metaphysics and natural science in pre-Socratics, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle the Hellenistic schools or neo-Platonism.
Prereq: 301 or 10 cr hrs of Philos at the 200 level; or above; or grad standing in Philos; or permission of instructor. Repeatable to a maximum of 10 cr hrs.

5211 (601.01)--Ancient Philosophy: Plato
3 Credit Hours

A survey of central philosophical themes in one or more Platonic dialogues.
Prereq: 301 or 10 cr hrs of Philos at the 200 level; or above; or grad standing in Philos; or permission of instructor.

5212 (601.02)--Ancient Philosophy: Aristotle
3 Credit Hours

A survey of central philosophical themes in one or more Aristotelian treatises.
Prereq: 301 or 10 cr hrs of Philos at the 200 level; or above; or grad standing in Philos; or permission of instructor.

5220 (602)--Studies in Medieval Philosophy
3 Credit Hours

An intensive examination of a major philosopher, school or philosophical problem of the medieval period; topics vary.
Prereq: 302 and 10 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 200 level or above; or grad standing in Philos; or permission of instructor. Repeatable to a maximum of 15 cr hrs.

5230 (603)--Studies in 17th-Century Philosophy
3 Credit Hours

An intensive examination of a major philosopher or philosophical problem of the rationalist period; topics vary from quarter to quarter.
Prereq: 303 and 10 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 200 level or above; or grad standing in Philos; or written of instructor. Repeatable to a maximum of 15 cr hrs.

5240 (604.02)--Studies in 18th Century Philosophy: Selected Problems or Topics
3 Credit Hours

An intensive examination of one or more important themes in Kant's philosophical writings.
Prereq: 303, or 304, and 10 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 200 level or above; or grad standing in Philos; or permission of instructor

5241 (604.01)--Studies in 18th Century Philosophy: Kant
3 Credit Hours

5260 (606)--Studies in 20th-Century Philosophy
3 Credit Hours

An intensive examination of one or more central movement in 20th-century philosophy; topics vary.
Prereq: 15 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 200 level or above, or grad standing in Philos or permission of instructor. Repeatable to a maximum of 15 cr hrs.

5261 Phenomenology and Existentialism
3 Credit Hours

Early existentialist ideas of Kierkegaard and Nietzsche; Husserl's phenomenological method and critical analysis of works of philosophers such as Heidegger, Jaspers, Sartre, Beauvoir, and others.

5300 (631)--Advanced Moral Philosophy
3 Credit Hours

An intensive examination of major issues within moral philosophy such as: the foundations of morality; objectivity in ethics; morality, reason and sentiment; virtues and vices.
Prereq: 431 and 10 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 200 level or above or grad standing in Philos or permission of instructor.

5400 (630)--Advanced Political and Social Philosophy
3 Credit Hours

An intensive examination of issues in political and social philosophy, including democracy, civil disobedience, anarchism, totalitarianism, nature of the state, etc.
Prereq: 230 and 10 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 200 level or above; or grad standing in Philos; or permission of instructor, and English 110 or 111 or equiv.

5410 (638)--Advanced Philosophy of Law
3 Credit Hours

An examination of the nature and function of law and of such problems as the relation of law to morality and the justification of punishment.
Prereq: 338 and 10 cr hrs of Philos coursework at the 200 level or above; or grad standing; or equiv or permission of instructor.

5420 (625)--Philosophical Topics in Feminist Theory
3 Credit Hours

An analytical study of selected philosophical issues arising out of feminist theory, such as the nature of autonomy, or the relation between gender and knowledge.
Prereq: 10 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 300 level or above; or grad standing; or permission of instructor. Repeatable to a maximum of 10 cr hrs.

5450 (640)--Advanced Aesthetic Theory
3 Credit Hours

Basic issues in philosophy of art: the definition of art; meaning, truth, and representation in art; the nature and basis of criticism; the criteria of interpretation of works of art.
Prereq: 15 cr hrs of Philos course work at 200 level or above; grad standing in Philos; or permission of instructor. Not open to students with credit for 641.

5500 (650)--Advanced Symbolic Logic
3 Credit Hours

Introduction to the metatheory of first-order logics and languages: axiomatic development of propositional and predicate logic; model theory; soundness, completeness, and Lowenheim-Skolem theorems.
Prereq: 250

5510 (652)--Nonclassical Logic
3 Credit Hours

Study of selected systems of nonclassical logic, such as entailment systems, modal, many-valued, epistemic, deontic, imperative, erotetic, tense, and free logics.
Prereq: 650. Repeatable to a maximum of 10 cr hrs.

5530 Philosophy of Logic and Mathematics

Analysis of basic concepts used in logic and in philosophical claims about logic and mathematics, such as proposition, logical truth, mathematical objects, and necessity.

5540 Advanced Philosophy of Rational Choice

Advanced study of the principles and methods of the philosophy of rational choice with applications in the theory of knowledge, ethics, and social and political philosophy.
Prereq: 2500 or 2540; or enrollment in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics Major; or Grad standing in Philos; or permission of instructor.

5550 (750)--Advanced Logical Theory
3 Credit Hours

Topics include formal arithmetic, recursive functions, Turing machines, Godel's incompleteness theorems, Church's thesis, arithmetical truth, logical paradoxes, and higher-order logic.
Preq: 250 and 650. Repeatable to a maximum of 15 hours.

5600 (673) - Advanced Philosophy of Language
3 Credit Hours

Basic problems and results in the philosophy of language, concentrating on theories of reference, theories of meaning, and theories of language-use (speech-acts, implicature, etc.).
Prereq: 250 and 10 credit hrs of Philos course work at the 300 level or above (preferably 473); or grad standing in Philos; or permission of instructor.

5650 (655)--Advanced Philosophy of Science
3 Credit Hours

A study of the nature and structure of scientific concepts, laws, and theories; appraisal of methodologies, presuppositions, and frames of reference in science.
Prereq: 250 and 10 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 300 level or above (preferably 455); or 250 and grad standing in Philos; or permission of instructor.

5700 (663)--Advanced Metaphysics
3 Credit Hours

An intensive examination of major metaphysical problems: categories, universals, substance and process, causality and law, space and time, metaphysical presuppositions of knowledge.
Prereq: 250 or 10 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 300 level or above (preferably 463); or grad standing; or permission of instructor.

5750 (660)--Advanced Theory of Knowledge
3 Credit Hours

An intensive examination of major epistemological problems: the possibility, origin, foundation, structure, methods, limits, types, and validity of knowledge.
Prereq: 250 and 10 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 300 level or above (preferably 460); or grad standing; or permission of instructor.

5800 (667) - Advanced Philosophy of Mind
3 Credit Hours

Classical and contemporary approaches to the nature of mind, mind-body, other minds, intentionality, and other problems.
Prereq: 15 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 300 level or above (preferably 467); or grad standing in Philos; or permission of instructor. Not open to students with credit for 767.

5830 (612)--Introduction to Cognitive Science
3 Credit Hours

Cognitive science is an interdisciplinary study of the nature of human thought; psychological, philosophical, linguistic, and artificial intelligence approaches to knowledge representation.
Prereq: Permission of instructor or a total of 12 cr hrs from at least two of the following areas: Cptr Inf, Linguist, Philos, and Psych. Not open to students with credit for CptrInf 612, Linguist 612, or Psych 612 or 794 (Sp Qtr 1989) or 794A (Wi Qtr 1990). Cross-listed in Computer and Information Science, Linguistics, and Psychology.

5840 (620)--Advanced Philosophy of Cognitive Science
3 Credit Hours

In-depth examination of the influence of results in cognitive science upon the way in which philosophers approach fundamental issues about the nature of the mind.
Prereq: 467 or permission of instructor.

5850 (670) - Philosophy of Religion
3 Credit Hours

A study of religious concepts and problems; the idea and nature of God, of humans, their relation to the world and human destiny.
Prereq: 10 cr hrs of Philos course work at the 300 level or above; or grad standing; or permission of instructor.

8001 --Graduate Training Seminar
1-3 Credit Hours

This course is designed to provide professional training for all first- and second-year graduate students that will enable them to develop the skills required for success in research, teaching and service.
Prereq: Grad standing in Philos. Repeatable to a maximum of 5 cr hrs or 2 completions. This course is graded S/U.

8100 (700) - First-Year Seminar
4 Credit Hours

A topically variable introduction to advanced philosophical methodology.
Open only to first-year philosophy grad students.