Philosophy
Churchill has a tradition of excellence in philosophy going back to the earliest days of the College. Edward Craig, who was until 2006 the Knightbridge Professor of Philosophy, became a Fellow of the College in 1966. Simon Blackburn, until 2011 the Bertrand Russell Professor of Philosophy, started his career as a Junior Research Fellow at Churchill in 1967. Meanwhile, the College has hosted a number of highly successful Fellows in Philosophy who have gone on to hold prestigious positions in the UK and elsewhere.
Today, Philosophy at Churchill stands out for its diversity and its focus on developing the academic potential of each individual student. Our undergraduates come from a wide range of educational backgrounds, both in the UK and abroad. What they all have in common is a desire to excel academically, and an understanding that working hard is an essential prerequisite for doing so.
Entry Requirements
Churchill College’s standard A Level offer in Philosophy is A*A*A. For IB, our standard offer is 43 points overall with 777 at Higher Level.
If you are taking other qualifications, please see the following University webpage for equivalent entry requirements: Check which qualifications we accept | Undergraduate Study
There are no subject requirements for this course. The following subjects are recommended:
- Mathematics
- Religious Studies
- Philosophy
- English (language or literature)
- History
- Languages (ancient or modern)
For more information on this course, see the University course page: Philosophy, BA (Hons) | Undergraduate Study
Admissions Assessment
There is no admissions assessment in Philosophy.
Written Work
Churchill does not require written work for Philosophy.
Suggested Reading
Smith, P. and Jones, O.R. The Philosophy of Mind (Cambridge University Press)
Russell, B. Problems of Philosophy (Oxford University Press)
Nagel, T. What Does it All Mean? (Oxford University Press)
Blackburn, S W. Think (Oxford University Press)
Descartes, R. Meditations (many acceptable editions)
Mill, J.S. Utilitarianism (many acceptable editions)
Warnock, G.J. Contemporary Moral Philosophy (Macmillan)
Williams, B.A.O. Morality (Cambridge University Press)
Smith, P. Formal Logic: An Introduction (Cambridge University Press)
Hodges, W. Logic (Penguin)
Campbell, K. Body and Mind (Notre Dame)
Carruthers, P. Introducing Persons (Routledge)
Director of Studies
Professor Derek Matravers
Careers
Past students of Philosophy at Churchill have gone on to a variety of careers, including: law, media, management consulting, engineering, science, school teaching, investment banking, medicine, policing, and others. Some of our former students are also teaching Philosophy at university themselves.
More generally, Cambridge Philosophy graduates pursue a wide variety of career paths. More than a third go on to postgraduate study, with a significant number of others progressing to law, civil service, teaching, and business.
Studying Philosophy at Churchill College
Philosophy is the most ancient of academic disciplines, and Cambridge is an excellent place to study it. The so-called ‘analytic’ school of philosophy originated in Cambridge in the early twentieth century, when Russell, Moore, and Wittgenstein were here. Today, the Philosophy course is among the most rigorous and rewarding in the world, and the Cambridge Faculty is ranked among the very best Philosophy departments in the UK for both teaching and research.
If you read Philosophy at Cambridge, you’d take one or more parts of the Cambridge Philosophy Tripos. The Tripos is run by the Faculty of Philosophy and you would attend the same lectures, seminars and discussion groups, and sit the same University exams as students from all other Cambridge colleges. In addition, each college provides individual tutoring through the supervision system. The main focus of the supervision is an essay which you’d submit in advance, to be marked by your supervisor. The supervision itself is devoted to a critical discussion of the essay topic. As a Philosophy student at Cambridge, you’d normally have one supervision per week, either individually or in a pair.
Full course details are provided on the Faculty’s Prospective Undergraduates webpage and the University’s Undergraduate Study webpage.
You may also be interested in:
