by our College Data Analytics TeamCollege Factual looked at 77 colleges and universities when compiling its 2024 Best Philosophy Bachelor's Degree Schools ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 8,334 bachelor's degrees in philosophy during the 2020-2021 academic year.
Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology
Your choice of philosophy for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. Below we explain some of the most important factors to consider before making your choice:
A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.
Average early-career salary of those graduating with their bachelor's degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. After all, your bachelor's degree won't mean much if it doesn't help you find a job that will help you earn a living.
In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:
Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for philosophy students working on their bachelor's degree.
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Philosophy Bachelor's Degree Schools list, to help you choose the best school for you.
To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a bachelor's degree in philosophy. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
Every student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in philosophy has to check out University of Pennsylvania. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.
Bachelor's recipients from the philosophy major at University of Pennsylvania make $31,893 more than the standard graduate with the same degree shortly after graduation.
More information about a bachelor’s in philosophy from University of Pennsylvania
It's difficult to beat Duke University if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in philosophy. Located in the large city of Durham, Duke is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in philosophy from Duke University
It is difficult to beat University of Chicago if you wish to pursue a bachelor's degree in philosophy. Located in the city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.
Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the philosophy program report average early career income of $28,698.
More information about a bachelor’s in philosophy from University of Chicago
Emory University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a bachelor's degree in philosophy. Located in the city of Atlanta, Emory is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.
Philosophy bachelor's degree recipients from Emory University get an earnings boost of about $4,075 above the typical earnings of philosophy majors.
More information about a bachelor’s in philosophy from Emory University
Located in the city of New York, Columbia is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.
Bachelor's recipients from the philosophy program at Columbia University in the City of New York make $9,108 more than the typical graduate in this field shortly after graduation.
More information about a bachelor’s in philosophy from Columbia University in the City of New York
Boston College is a fairly large private not-for-profit college located in the city of Chestnut Hill.
Those philosophy students who get their bachelor's degree from Boston College receive $22,299 more than the standard philosophy grad.
More information about a bachelor’s in philosophy from Boston College
USC is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Los Angeles.
Students who graduate with their bachelor's from the philosophy program report average early career income of $28,506.
More information about a bachelor’s in philosophy from University of Southern California
Vanderbilt is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Nashville.
Those philosophy students who get their bachelor's degree from Vanderbilt University make $2,540 more than the standard philosophy graduate.
More information about a bachelor’s in philosophy from Vanderbilt University
Located in the city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public university with a fairly large student population.
Philosophy bachelor's degree recipients from University of Washington - Seattle Campus earn a boost of about $6,852 over the typical income of philosophy graduates.
More information about a bachelor’s in philosophy from University of Washington - Seattle Campus
UNC Chapel Hill is a very large public university located in the small city of Chapel Hill.
Those philosophy students who get their bachelor's degree from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill make $6,604 more than the standard philosophy student.
More information about a bachelor’s in philosophy from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Located in the large city of Madison, UW - Madison is a public university with a very large student population.
Philosophy bachelor's degree recipients from University of Wisconsin - Madison earn a boost of around $6,279 over the average earnings of philosophy majors.
More information about a bachelor’s in philosophy from University of Wisconsin - MadisonHere are some additional great schools for Philosophy students that almost earned our Best Philosophy Bachelor's Degree Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 12 | University of California - Davis | Davis, CA |
| 13 | University of Notre Dame | Notre Dame, IN |
| 14 | Boston University | Boston, MA |
| 15 | University of California - Berkeley | Berkeley, CA |
| 16 | University of Virginia - Main Campus | Charlottesville, VA |
| 17 | New York University | New York, NY |
| 18 | The University of Texas at Austin | Austin, TX |
| 19 | University of Massachusetts Amherst | Amherst, MA |
View the Best Philosophy Bachelor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.
One of 3 majors within the Philosophy & Religious Studies area of study, Philosophy has other similar majors worth exploring.
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Philosophy | 7,961 |
| Other Philosophy | 256 |
| Ethics | 73 |
| Applied & Professional Ethics | 38 |
| Logic | 6 |
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Religious Studies | 6,034 |
| Other Philosophy & Religious Studies | 179 |
| General Philosophy & Religious Studies | 138 |
