What I like about the Department

The Philosophy department at Warwick has lots to offer no matter where your interests lie. Whether you’re into applying philosophy in a wider educational setting or grappling with Kant’s ‘Critique of Pure Reason’ there are a wide range of modules you can choose. One thing which really stands out to me about the department is the fact that they are constantly advertising talks about the research that is happening in the department, whether this is from the professors or our very own post-graduate students. To me, this really narrows the gap between undergraduate and postgraduate students as it gives undergraduate students a chance to be able to learn more about a particular area they are interested in as well as being able to make friends with people who aren’t just in your year.

Everyone in the department is super friendly. The department provides advice on how to write essays which is really next to none, and they put your academic success on the top of their priority list. I really feel that in particular, the advice given on how to write essays is useful for all students, with members of staff even offering to go through all the essays I had written for first and second year.

Academic support in the department is coupled with the opportunity to attend end of term parties in addition to the Philosophy Society’s events ranging from socials at the Dirty Duck (our very own campus pub) to Phil n Tea every Friday which happens in the department’s very common room! I really feel like the mixture of academic and social events is what makes the department stand out.

Sara Saquib, Third-year Undergraduate

A look back on my first term at Warwick

The campus

When I first came to Warwick I was impressed by how modern the campus was, and I liked the convenience of all the facilities being within walking distance: university buildings, the library, accommodation halls, bars and cafes, the arts centre and supermarkets.

Beginning to study

As a PhilPsych student, I had introductory meetings with both Philosophy and Psychology departments. With all the essential information about the course that they gave it was easy to get into the new student routine. As far as I can tell, the workload during the first term wasn’t too huge, I didn’t find it hard to keep to the pace, even though I am an international student and I needed to adapt to English language as well as to studying at a university level. Also, there were no marked philosophy assignments during the first term, only a few unassessed essays meant to give you an opportunity to practice writing and get feedback. As a fresher, I had a student mentor assigned to me which was there to help me with queries that arose during the first term, and the whole year.

Social life

Of course, when you come to university you are eager to find new friends. It was quite easy to make connections with those I was living with and also with people doing different Philosophy degrees. I met many of them in Philosophy Common Room where students come to share their ideas, study or enjoy a cup of free coffee. In this kind of informal environment with friendly and open people it takes no effort to make new friends. There are also different societies to join, including philosophy society, which organises social events which are also a good opportunity to find people that you have something in common with.

Rugile Jonusaite, 2nd-year Philosophy with Psychology

What I like about the Department

If I could sum up the Philosophy course at Warwick in one word it would be...modern. I found that unlike some institutions that tend to focus only on the typical Plato and Aristotle type modules, Warwick gives you the opportunity to intertwine Philosophy with your everyday life.

One of my favourite modules was ‘Philosophy through film’ which involved investigating whether films could actually do Philosophy. Although we didn’t get to swap lectures for film screenings, we had fun movie nights, thoughtful debates and eventually created our own short films which is less daunting than it sounds, I promise. Our lecturers encourage us to genuinely investigate the aspects of Philosophy that interest us so that we are constantly interested in what we study and keen to contribute our own ideas.

The department is keen to show us that we have support systems and holds events, talks and movie nights to bring Philosophy students together. As a smaller department, Philosophy students here are very connected and have a safe space (common room) with free beverages to accommodate us. I like the fact that no matter how intense things get, you know you have someone to rant to and a nice cosy space to do it in.

Oray Adedulu, Third-year Undergraduate

Advice on module choices

What initially drew me to Warwick was the variety of modules available compared to other Universities. While I knew I wanted to do Philosophy, I was also interested in many other subjects I was worried I wouldn’t get a chance to study again. Luckily that has never been an issue, over the last 2 years politics, gender studies, photography, psychology and media have all worked their way into my degree one way or another.

My biggest advice on module choices would be to have an open mind. It's easy to stick with modules where you recognise the content being taught but the Philosophy department has some great lecturers who specialise in really interesting topics. The modules I’ve found most rewarding are the ones on topics I’d never heard of before but were the lecturer's area of speciality. I would really recommend going to the module fair they put on, each lecturer gives a short presentation on their module and it’s a really easy way to get a feel for it and see if it’s something you’d enjoy studying.

I would also recommend trying a module from the IATL department. Their modules bring together students from all different subjects across the University and it’s a great way to meet students you wouldn’t ordinarily interact with. I took Ethical Beings, a module that explored ethics in children’s literature, the lessons were held in a studio and were almost always interactive. For my final assessment for the module, I ended up creating a website, something I never thought I’d have the opportunity to do at University.

Isabella Clarke-Price, Third-year Undergraduate

Meet Leyla, our student blogger, and follow her journey as a third-year Philosophy student at Warwick.

"‘Hello! My name is Leyla and I’m studying single honours Philosophy after changing from a joint course in Philosophy and Literature in my first year. I’m loving my course more than I expected to and I’d be more than happy to talk to you about Philosophy."

Read more from Leyla