Philosophy

Types of Degrees Philosophy Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many philosophy graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	7,543
Master’s Degree	846
Doctor’s Degree	399
Associate Degree	360
Basic Certificate	133
Graduate Certificate	44
Undergraduate Certificate	6

What Philosophy Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to philosophy were asked what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. They weighted these areas on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest.

Knowledge Areas for Philosophy Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Skills for Philosophy Majors

philosophy majors are found most commonly in careers in which the following skills are important:

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Abilities for Philosophy Majors

Some of the most crucial abilities to master while a philosophy student include the following:

• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

What Can You Do With a Philosophy Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with philosophy:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Mathematical Science Professors	9.4%	$73,230
Mathematicians	29.0%	$101,900
Natural Sciences Managers	9.9%	$123,860
Philosophy and Religion Professors	12.3%	$71,890

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy?

This is a less frequently chosen undergraduate major. Only 8,334 students graduated with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy in 2021, making it rank #61 in popularity. This major attracts more men than women. About 58% of the graduates in this field are male.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of philosophy majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	569
Black or African American	412
Hispanic or Latino	1,198
White	4,198
International Students	549
Other Races/Ethnicities	617

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Philosophy, too. About 7.3% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Philosophy

Some degrees associated with philosophy may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to philosophy have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Bachelor’s Degree	16.4%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	1.8%
Master’s Degree	29.2%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	0.1%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.	1.6%
Doctoral Degree	42.6%
Post-Doctoral Training	8.0%

Online Philosophy Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	6	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	3	0
Associate’s Degree	123	15
Bachelor’s Degree	28	4
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	180	4
Post-Master’s	8	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	110	2
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	3	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Philosophy

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to philosophy.

Major	Number of Grads
Religious Studies	9,587
Other Philosophy & Religious Studies	202
General Philosophy & Religious Studies	181

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.