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Philosophy

Hi, I am coming to Durham to study Natural Sciences this year. I intend to do physics, along with philosophy, but recently I am contemplating possibly doing single honours philosophy, or philosophy and maths. So basically I'm looking for some opinions of people doing philosophy or physics or maths etc.

I really enjoy the philosophical aspect of my english literature A level, and it is my most successful and enjoyable subject at the moment. Although I enjoy reading popular physics books such as Brian Greene's ones, I also love reading Nietzsche, Russell etc and stuff about abstract mathematics. The problem is, sometimes physics seems interesting, sometimes a little bit dull and repetitve. On the other hand, philosophy can seem brilliantly stimulating (zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance really inspired me,) but then sometimes some of heidegger's stuff and similar can seem really rambling and pointless. :frown:

So basically, whats it like to do philosophy at uni? job prospects? And does physics get a lot more interesting than A level?

I guess the crux of my question is, given this information, what do you think I'll enjoy best? :confused:

cheers
john

Reply 1

Itchynscratchy

10

*note that all said here is said whilst intoxicated* :biggrin:

Physics for degree gets a lot more interesting than physics at A-level, as discussed in another thread, physics at A-level is pants. However, it is also a lot harder, you really have to push yourself to get through it. If you are not used to having to do this then it might be a shock.

Reply 2

josephcohen_2

7

AFAIK Philosphy in terms of career prospects isn't that great. From what i hear/read/been told quantitive degrees (maths/phy/economics et al) are more likely to lead to higher wages than humanities. However, the point of university isn't all about the job, its about doing what you like.

Personally i suggest you hedge your bets and do phys/phil just like i hedged my bets my doing PPE. However, my only fear is the dilutation of one subject in order to study multiple.

I hope that was helpful.

Reply 3

Mattmoy_2000

9

**** you in the lensing dr. gordon arse.
yeah, I'm pissed and quoting people.

Reply 4

john-boro

OP

1

josephcohen_2

AFAIK Philosphy in terms of career prospects isn't that great. From what i hear/read/been told quantitive degrees (maths/phy/economics et al) are more likely to lead to higher wages than humanities. However, the point of university isn't all about the job, its about doing what you like.

Personally i suggest you hedge your bets and do phys/phil just like i hedged my bets my doing PPE. However, my only fear is the dilutation of one subject in order to study multiple.

I hope that was helpful.

As you are the only sober one who replied, I feel inclined to respond to this :p:

The last point you said about dilution of a subject is the thing I am worried about too. Sure if I have a half-physics degree, I've got enough in there to be a physics teacher or a maths teacher, but beyond that it might be a bit limiting maybe. A few managers/bosses I've spoken to through my dad's work say they would look more favourably on a philosophy degree than a business one, which is interesting; but again, if it's diluted with physics, I doubt it would have the same strength.

Cheers everybody for the replies so far :smile:

sorry...

Does anyone else think that the internet should have an alcohol limit? Like "blow into the bag before you're allowed on MSN/messageboards"?

Reply 7

Piggsil

16

Mattmoy_2000

Does anyone else think that the internet should have an alcohol limit? Like "blow into the bag before you're allowed on MSN/messageboards"?

I think the same about mobile phones.

Reply 8

candystrippa

2

I'm not coming to Durham, but I will be studying philosophy next year. In my opinion you should go for straight philosophy. People who say that philosophers dont have very good job prospects are getting out of date!

Many top companies these days are favouring philosophy graduates because they have finally realized that philosophers are the ones who are truely critical thinkers with innovative minds, suitable for top positions i.e. in Poland a large multinational in search for a new CEO looked specifically for philosophy graduates, not economics/business/physics!!

Reply 9

Piggsil

16

NB my housemate does Philosophy and has landed herself a summer internship at the investment bank JP Morgan.

Reply 10

Itchynscratchy

10

. Sorry john. We physics people finished exams yesterday. i am quite impressed with my drunken spelling though, and having re-read my post it is actually quite accurate. :biggrin:

Reply 11

Itchynscratchy

10

Mattmoy_2000

**** you in the lensing dr. gordon arse.
yeah, I'm pissed and quoting people.

Reply 12

_bec_

I'm coming to Durham this October to do straight honours philosophy, and like you am a little worried it might get tedious.

As for job prospects, Philosophy gives you many many transferable skills, which is what employers are looking for at the end of the day. Also, if I remember correctly, the Guardian League table gave job prospects coming out of a Philosophy degree at Durham 10/10 (Oxford got 9/10). But then that all depends on if you give any weighting to league table stastics.

I do remember someone on here calling the Guardian League Table "a joke that got out of hand" or something. Haha.

I guess in the end, you can always change courses if you don't enjoy it. Oh and also, there's always going to be aspects of a degree you don't enjoy, no matter how much you love the subject.

Hope any of that helps.

Reply 13

john-boro

OP

1

thanks for the advice peeps. And the laughs :wink:

This is so difficult! I think what I'll do is, before I have to choose any modules I'll read loads of books, and see which I found most interesting.
john

Reply 14

goldenbarnes

11

Does anybody know when you have to register for philosophy modules for next year? Is it tomorrow? I'm doing political philosophy next year but don't know when I have to register, which is a problem.

Reply 15

Mattmoy_2000

9

it'll be in the last week of term, after you've got your results.

Reply 16

goldenbarnes

11

Mattmoy_2000

it'll be in the last week of term, after you've got your results.

Cheers. Yeah, I did know that, it was just the law department needed us to hand in module choice forms by a certain deadline last week, and I assumed (wrongly) that that sort of procedure would be mirrored in all departments. Didn't want to miss out on my Philosophical Fix of Lockean Shiznitchin.

Reply 17

arkbar

12

Surely you've missed out on it for all of this year...

Reply 18

Yuanfen

john-boro

Hi, I am coming to Durham to study Natural Sciences this year. I intend to do physics, along with philosophy, but recently I am contemplating possibly doing single honours philosophy, or philosophy and maths. So basically I'm looking for some opinions of people doing philosophy or physics or maths etc.

I really enjoy the philosophical aspect of my english literature A level, and it is my most successful and enjoyable subject at the moment. Although I enjoy reading popular physics books such as Brian Greene's ones, I also love reading Nietzsche, Russell etc and stuff about abstract mathematics. The problem is, sometimes physics seems interesting, sometimes a little bit dull and repetitve. On the other hand, philosophy can seem brilliantly stimulating (zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance really inspired me,) but then sometimes some of heidegger's stuff and similar can seem really rambling and pointless. :frown:

So basically, whats it like to do philosophy at uni? job prospects? And does physics get a lot more interesting than A level?

I guess the crux of my question is, given this information, what do you think I'll enjoy best? :confused:

cheers
john

John, I am in EXACTLY the same position as you, it's spooky :O! :P I've come to the same conclusion as you and will go reading a few books before I decide. Good luck to you ^_^ xx

Philosophy

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