Philosophy and Religious Studies

The Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies invites and provokes students to examine themselves and the world in more comprehensive ways, as well as to look at the most fundamental aspects of human reasoning and discourse. The department also continues the College's heritage of examining the religious dimensions of human existence in a non-sectarian manner as essential to a liberal arts education.

Why study Philosophy and Religious Studies at The College of Idaho?

The department offers a major and a minor both in philosophy and in religious studies. Majors or minors in philosophy or religious studies serve as excellent complements to other disciplines in the College's PEAK curriculum. Recent graduates have combined either philosophy or religious studies with fields as diverse as biology, history, music, chemistry, literature, and political economy. Our faculty encourages such creative combinations, and internships in religious studies or philosophy often are cross-disciplinary with another field.

C of I philosophy majors can emphasize areas such as ethics and the analytic tradition. Independent studies can be arranged for in-depth exploration of special topics of interest. The religious studies curriculum offers specialties in comparative approaches to religious traditions, ethics, and issues in science and the environment. Regardless of the emphasis chosen by the student, the department affirms the wisdom of the maxim that "Those who know only one religious tradition know none."

Career Opportunities for C of I Philosophy and Religious Studies Students

A major in philosophy provides excellent preparation for graduate work in law, ethics, religion, philosophy, and other fields in which reasoning and argumentation skills or ability to work at a high level of abstraction are important. Likewise a major in religious studies is beneficial for these areas in addition to ministry, social work, medicine, education, or other careers. By pairing study of philosophy or religious studies with another discipline, the College's PEAK curriculum opens a wide range of career and graduate school opportunities to our students.