Ph.D. in Philosophy

Welcome to the Department of Philosophy at Boston College

Boston College’s graduate philosophy programs attract talented students from around the world. We offer master’s and doctoral degrees, covering all periods in the history of philosophy and with a diversity of philosophical approaches.

The Department of Philosophy is noted for its strength in the history of philosophy, contemporary continental philosophy, and practical philosophy, including ethics and social-political philosophy. In addition, the department offers two interdisciplinary programs: philosophy and law, and philosophy and theology. The program also includes Asian philosophy and diaspora studies.

Each September our doctoral program admits a small group of new students, who are immediately welcomed as research assistants. The experience of working with an established scholar is designed to help the student learn some of the basic skills of philosophical research and establish a mentoring relationship with one or more faculty. The program’s flexibility ensures individualized attention in designing a plan of welcome to the department of philosophy at Boston College study. All Ph.D. students have funding through their fifth year in the program (fourth year if they enter with an M.A.) assuming successful completion of requirements. Doctoral students gain experience teaching in the University’s two-semester Philosophy of the Person core course. There is a teaching seminar in the first two years of the program to help prepare the doctoral students to design their own syllabi and to provide feedback on teaching; ongoing class visitations take place thereafter.

The M.A. program admits an additional group of students, who share the same faculty, courses, and other resources for the study of philosophy, including language preparation.

Philosophy at Boston College benefits from our location in the Boston area, a rich center of academic life, including universities, libraries, and cultural institutions that aid all aspects of our research and scholarly interchange. There are opportunities for studies abroad at selected universities.

We invite you to consider joining our thriving intellectual community as we continue to investigate philosophy’s perennial issues.

Education with a heart and soul—and the power to transform

Boston College, the first institution of higher education to operate in the city of Boston, is today among the nation’s foremost universities, a leader in the liberal arts, scientific inquiry, and student formation.

Grounded in the ideals that inspired our Jesuit founders, Boston College urges students to look inward but always to reach out—to develop their minds and talents to the fullest and use them in service to others.

About the Morrissey College

The Robert J. Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences fosters the rigorous intellectual development and the religious, ethical, and personal growth of its students. Morrissey College faculty and students directly engage the world’s most pressing problems, using their gifts to enhance the common good.

The Morrissey College offers graduate programs in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Students emerge prepared to thrive in a broad range of careers and ready to serve as capable and passionate leaders, working as a leaven for good in communities around the world.

As the oldest and largest division of Boston College, the Morrissey College embodies the Jesuit, Catholic commitment to the depth of inquiry, academic excellence, and educating the whole person through a formative engagement with the liberal arts.

Why Boston College?

When students enter Boston College, they take the first steps on a journey of discovery—one that stimulates their intellectual, personal, ethical, and spiritual growth. The Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences' programs ask students to learn about themselves, their communities, and the world, to search for truth wherever they go, and to use their talents to improve the lives of others.

Those who seek an education that lasts a lifetime will find the challenge and support to build meaningful and fulfilling futures.

1. A Dynamic Liberal Arts Education

Explore the range of disciplines that shape well-educated people prepared to thrive in the 21st century. A liberal arts education at Boston College develops valuable skills, including critical thinking, ethical decision-making, effective communication, and the capacity to see the human experience from a range of perspectives.

2. Intellectual Rigor

Morrissey College challenges students to discover and achieve their full potential. Renowned faculty, innovative courses, and off-campus opportunities expand students’ knowledge and experience.

3. Jesuit, Catholic Tradition

Intellectual rigor, integrating knowledge, student formation, care for individuals, using our education in service to others—these Jesuit, Catholic values define the Boston College experience.

4. Inquiry Across Disciplines

Here, scholarly collaboration draws research and teaching beyond traditional disciplinary boundaries. The Core Curriculum, the Institute for the Liberal Arts, the Institue for Integrated Science and Society, and a variety of research projects bring together students and faculty from different areas of inquiry.

5. The Benefits of Boston

With more than 50 institutions of higher learning in the metropolitan area, Boston is truly one of the preeminent college towns. It’s also a world-class city full of history, scientific and tech innovators, culture, and internship possibilities.

6. Alumni Network

Students benefit from the connections and support of the tight-knit and loyal network of nearly 180,000 Boston College alumni.