Our undergraduate programs
The philosophy programs at the Université de Montréal are intended to give students a thorough grounding in the essential themes and main avenues of philosophical reflection.
Drawing on its historical roots, philosophy makes it possible to arrive at an integrated understanding of human culture, at the same time as it trains students in analytical methods and critical thinking.
Our programs
The Department of Philosophy offers the following programs:
- BA in Philosophy (Baccalauréat en philosophie)
- Major in Philosophy (Majeure en philosophie)
- Minor in Philosophy (Mineure en philosophie)
- Minor in Ethics and Law (Mineure en éthique et droit)
Our bidisciplinary programs:
- BA in Philosophy and Classical Studies (Baccalauréat en philosophie et études classiques)
- BA in Political Science and Philosophy (Baccalauréat en science politique et philosophie)
- BA in French-language Literatures and Philosophy (Baccalauréat en littératures de langue française et philosophie)
NB: The Université de Montréal is a French-language institution. This English website contains only the most frequently consulted pages from our French website. For more information
Program structure
All the Department's programs are based on 4 teaching and research streams:
- The historical foundations of philosophy
- The philosophy of language and of science
- Contemporary western philosophy
- Ethics and political philosophy
Several programs include (often as optional courses) the study of one of the main languages in the philosophical tradition:
- Ancient Greek
- Latin
- German
- Italian
- Chinese
- English
See the student guide for the Department of Philosophy (in French).
Job outlook
Philosophy students do not receive any professional training, strictly speaking, but a general education based on analytical skills and methods and critical thinking. They acquire writing and speaking skills and the ability to grasp and respond to other's arguments, in addition to honing their critical thinking ability and originality.
Philosophy graduates work in many fields, including:
- Journalism
- Communications
- Public administration
- Politics
- Diplomacy
- Education
According to the latest study by the Quebec ministère de l'Éducation, de l'Enseignement supérieur et de la Recherche, La Relance à l'université (in French), fewer than 40% of undergraduate philosophy students join the job market as soon as they graduate.
Of those who do, 83% find employment that draws more on their intellectual skills than on their knowledge of philosophy. In other words, acquiring skills in another discipline (journalism, communications, etc.) may also prove advantageous and help to open up more employment possibilities.
Generally speaking, over 60% of master's graduates in philosophy work in a field directly related to their studies, and fewer than 3% of them are seeking work.