Master of Arts in Philosophy

Philosophy starts with wonderment. Philosophers are prone to asking critical questions: about humankind, the world and society. Not satisfied with simple answers, philosophers will try to shed a light on these issues by looking at them from all the relevant angles. This wonderment results in a persistent demand for quality of argumentation. In their search for answers, philosophers delve deep for underlying motives and rational explanations. A philosopher’s search has no fixed end point: what is important, is the rational search for insights while continuously asking new questions.

Over the centuries, our way of thinking has been influenced by great philosophers. The Philosophy programme gives you the opportunity to think through fundamental questions and their respective answers critically, and to make your own contribution to philosophical thought. In addition to a thorough historical study of philosophical texts, our programme also strongly focuses on critical reflection on contemporary issues: the explosion of science, ecological and bioethical issues, changes in the scientific worldview, etc… .

A thorough study of important thinkers in history in combination with a focus on contemporary issues results in Philosophy students who learn to build arguments in a critical and autonomous manner, and who are able to contribute to contemporary and socially critical debates.

The entire Philosophy programme is built on the idea that general knowledge acquisition and understanding comes before specialist orientation. The one-year Master’s programme allows for a far-reaching specialization and, as such, is the apotheosis of your training. Depending on your interests, you can put together your own curriculum, with the Master’s dissertation at its heart.

Prospective students without a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy will have to hone their general knowledge of philosophy by taking an abridged Bachelor’s programme.

In addition to the (domain) Master’s programme described above, you can also choose a Master’s Programme in Teaching (in Dutch: Educatieve Master). More information can be found on www.ugent.be/educatievemaster.

Although the Philosophy programme does not lead towards a specific job or career path, this is of little consequence on the contemporary job market and its ever-increasing demand for graduates with a polyvalent education. Today’s HR managers focus less on specific diploma requirements, and all the more on finding the perfect match between a certain profile and a candidate. Nowadays it is often the candidate’s personality that plays an important role rather than their specific diploma.

Graduates from various disciplines are eligible for these ‘all-round jobs’. Philosophy graduates, however, have a favourable starting place thanks to their critical reflection skills, broad background and great independence and ability to synthesize. If, moreover, you decide to combine Philosophy with another field of study, you have an additional advantage over others.
Career opportunities that are directly in line with the programme are all situated in the academic research and/or education sectors.
Other possibilities are cultural, sociocultural, ideological and other organizations, and even in less obvious sectors such as government services, journalism, librarianship or even in the business world.