Welcome to the Department of Philosophy

image of Aristotle an Plato from School of Athens

The Department of Philosophy offers a variety of courses in traditional areas of philosophical study, including ethics, epistemology, logic, metaphysics, and the history of philosophy. Through a collaborative study of these topics, our faculty helps students develop the skills that we value as a department - skills like active reading, critical thinking, analytic writing, and effective speaking.

BH 302 Office Hours

Monday to Friday 8:30 am - 3:00 pm (FQ, WQ, SQ) Summer Hours vary

For appointment, email Academic Department Manager Sùsanna à'Kinlochaline or Department Chair Professor Ryan Wasserman

Advising

We are here to assist you with all your advising needs, including major/minor declarations and evaluations.

Please visit our Advising page to get started!

Philosophy Course Schedules

Student Spotlight

We want to hear from you! Please email us at philosophy@wwu.edu to share your Philosophy experiences at Western.

Camille Fogel standing outside backlit by the sunshine.

Camille Fogel

"I loved majoring in philosophy! I found the community to be really engaging, supportive, and academically challenging. I grew as a writer, thinker, and speaker, and I feel strongly that this degree directly laid the foundation for my success in graduate school. Studying philosophy has given me the tools to continue to learn, explore new ideas, and ask meaningful questions even outside of an academic setting."

Department of Philosophy Outstanding Graduating senior
2021-2022
Trent Latta stares directly into the camera with bright blue eyes.

Trent Latta

"No better educational backgrounds at Western could have prepared me for law school...both disciplines demand a commitment to deep, critical thinking and applied analyses."

Attorney, Actor, and Writer
'2003
Assistant Professor of Philosophy, University of Virginia

Dee Payton

“Studying philosophy is great because you get to study the structure of reasoning, which is relevant to basically everything… Plus, WWU has one of the best undergrad philosophy programs in the US!”

Assistant Professor of Philosophy, University of Virginia
'2017