Philosophy
V500Philosophy is arguably the oldest university subject and has the widest field, with philosophers asking fundamental and important questions about values, culture, science, religion and society. As such Philosophy sits at the heart of any university, engaging with and enriching other programmes. In fact, at Winchester, Philosophy has a special role pledged to pioneering values-driven education and asking big questions about human existence.
Course overview
If you’re keen to acquire the tools of logic and reason, to think rigorously and defend your own position clearly around these questions, then our dynamic three-year programme is a great place to start. We actively encourage critical reflection and debate, and you can study a range of core philosophical areas such as logic, epistemology, philosophy of language and aesthetics.
Top 15 in the UK for student satisfaction (Philosophy subject rankings, Complete University Guide 2025) (CUG,2024)
At Winchester, you study the grand narrative of the philosophical tradition, from ancient Greece to the world of existentialism and post-modernity. Each year you analyse the meaning and significance of classic philosophical works from thinkers as diverse as de Beauvoir, Aquinas, Fanon and Aristotle.
In analysing the texts produced by great intellects, you grow as a writer, debater and thinker. And it’s not all about heavyweight thinkers – you have the chance to explore philosophical ideas in everyday life: for example, how films or art help us to explore the big questions.
In Year 1, you begin by studying modules in Philosophy that are designed to develop your study skills and enhance your confidence in critical writing and reading. These include Philosophy: Paradoxes and the Search for Knowledge; Philosophy from Ancient to Early Modern Times; Christ and the Philosophers and The Good Life.
In Year 2, core modules include Thinking with the Earth and Research Planning; Kant, Hegel and Nietzsche; Philosophy of Mind, Psychology and Emotion and Gender and Sexuality. You also start choosing your optional modules to reflect your own academic interests, with options including Angels and Demons and Religion, Ritual and Society.
In Year 3, in addition to researching and writing your dissertation and studying the core module From Existentialism to Contemporary Philosophy, you can choose from a broad selection of optional modules. These cover topics from literature and art to mortality, theology and psychoanalysis and include the option of a volunteering or work placement.
You will graduate from the University of Winchester with a degree that shows you have an understanding of people and communities, not just texts. Some Philosophy students start their degree with a career in mind, such as teaching (philosophy, religion or ethics), journalism, social work and academia, while others discover their vocation during their course. Other potential career pathways are working for NGOs and charities, where ethical issues are paramount, and employment in both the public and private sectors.
Whatever your career plans, this is a degree that develops you as an independent thinker, a close observer of society and a collaborative problem solver – that gives you lots of options for your future.
Find out more about the School of History, Archaeology and Philosophy
What you need to know
Course start date
September
Location
Winchester campus
Course length
- 3 years full-time
- 4 years sandwich
- 5 years part-time
Apply
V500
Typical offer
104-120 points
Fees
From £9,250 pa
Course features
- Focus on values and beliefs to deepen your understanding of the specific needs of individuals and communities within local and global societies
- Learn the highly transferable skills of speaking and writing clearly and convincingly along with the capacity for independent thinking
- Learn from leading international thinkers across the campus on a wide range of questions relating to your course
- Gain real-world work experience as a part of your degree programme by volunteering for a placement within an organisation such as a charity or a think tank
Course details
Our aim is to shape 'confident learners' by enabling you to develop the skills needed to excel in your studies here and as well as onto further studies or the employment market.
You are taught primarily through a combination of lectures and seminars, allowing opportunities to discuss and develop your understanding of topics covered in lectures in smaller groups.
Your degree will begin with you receiving a strong foundation in the philosophical discipline through a carefully constructed programme off modules and projects, approachable even to those who have not formally studied philosophy in the past.
Independent learning
Over the duration of your course, you will be expected to develop independent and critical learning, progressively building confidence and expertise through independent and collaborative research, problem-solving and analysis with the support of staff. You take responsibility for your own learning and are encouraged to make use of the wide range of available learning resources available.
Overall workload
Your overall workload consists of class contact hours, independent learning and assessment activity.
While your actual contact hours may depend on the optional modules you select, the following information gives an indication of how much time you will need to allocate to different activities at each level of the course.
Year 1 (Level 4): Timetabled teaching and learning activity*
Teaching, learning and assessment: 180 hours
Independent learning: 1020 hours
Year 2 (Level 5): Timetabled teaching and learning activity*
Teaching, learning and assessment: 168 hours
Independent learning: 1032 hours
Year 3 (Level 6): Timetabled teaching and learning activity*
Teaching, learning and assessment: 168 hours
Independent learning: 1032 hours
*Please note these are indicative hours for the course.
Teaching hours
All class based teaching takes places between 9am – 6pm, Monday to Friday during . Wednesday afternoons are kept free from timetabled teaching for personal study time and for sports clubs and societies to train, meet and play matches. There may be some occasional learning opportunities (for example, an evening guest lecturer or performance) that take places outside of these hours for which you will be given forewarning.
Assessment
Our validated courses may adopt a range of means of assessing your learning. An indicative, and not necessarily comprehensive, list of assessment types you might encounter includes essays, portfolios, supervised independent work, presentations, written exams, or practical performances.
We ensure all students have an equal opportunity to achieve module learning outcomes. As such, where appropriate and necessary, students with recognised disabilities may have alternative assignments set that continue to test how successfully they have met the module's learning outcomes. Further details on assessment types used on the course you are interested in can be found on the course page, by attending an Open Day or Open Evening, or contacting our teaching staff.
Percentage of the course assessed by coursework
The assessment balance between examination and coursework depends to some extent on the optional modules you choose. The approximate percentage of the course assessed by different assessment modes is as follows:
Year 1 (Level 4)*:
75% coursework
0% written exams
25% practical exams
Year 2 (Level 5)*:
100% coursework
0% written exams
0% practical exams
Year 3 (Level 6)*:
78% coursework
0% written exams
22% practical exams
*Please note these are indicative percentages and modes for the programme.
Feedback
We are committed to providing timely and appropriate feedback to you on your academic progress and achievement in order to enable you to reflect on your progress and plan your academic and skills development effectively. You are also encouraged to seek additional feedback from your course tutors.
Modules
Please note the modules listed are correct at the time of publishing. The University cannot guarantee the availability of all modules listed and modules may be subject to change. The University will notify applicants of any changes made to the core modules listed. For further information please refer to winchester.ac.uk/termsandconditions
Modules
From why the fastest person on earth can never overtake a turtle to how we can possibly seek knowledge if we do not already know what we are looking for in order to recognise it, we will start thinking about philosophy through puzzles and paradoxes.
We start our journey through philosophy in the ancient world where Socrates is put to death for asking questions the authorities could not allow. We then move into the beginning of modernity with worries about demons altering our experiences, whether the self exists and if this is the best or worst of worlds.
Examine key debates in Western thought and consider some of the key thinkers in Christian thinking.
This module begins by providing you with a grounding in ethical theory and teaches you to apply this theory to real world cases, before shifting to broader questions of how the good might be realised within our society politically, and the forces that might work against this.
Modules
Our journey through philosophy continues with a series of revolutions: Kant sets out the limits of knowledge only for Hegel to sail far beyond them, before Nietzsche shows us how to philosophise with a hammer and brings the building down.
This module introduces you to various philosophical, religious and theological ways of thinking about ecology and engagements with nature. You will develop your key academic skills that will enable you confidently to formulate a research project proposal for your independent study dissertation.
Philosophy has often emphasised a single model of rational thought at the expense of our lives as emotional beings, but many people have different, but still valuable, ways of processing the world. This module is dedicated to investigating the depth and diversity of the human mind.
Examine the range and complexity of the Bible’s approach(es) to sex and relationships and reflect critically on the way the Bible is deployed in contemporary discussions around these issues.
Angels and Demons - 15 credits
Explore key questions of medieval philosophy and theology, such as the nature of reality and what it means to be human, through an examination of debates about angels and demons.
Religion, Ritual and Society - 15 credits
Here you are introduced to a range of ritual studies theorists and a selection of religious rituals, encouraging you to critically understand the role that ritual plays in the study of religions past and present.
Modules
You will produce a significant piece of work on a topic of your choice, working one-to-one with a specialist academic tutor to explore your interests and make a real contribution to the field of knowledge.
Our journey reaches the period of the Second World War when existentialist philosophers proclaimed the radical freedom of the human in the face of an absurd world, before moving into contemporary philosophical debates in fields such as post-structuralism and new materialisms.
Philosophy of Religion - 30 credits
Examine debates in the philosophy of religion such as belief and evidence, faith and proof, coherence and uncertainty, science and religion.
Philosophy of Literature and Art - 30 credits
In this module we turn to Freud and later psychoanalytic thinkers to investigate whether this discipline's account of the unconscious mind, of dreams, jokes and neuroses might be important, not only as therapy, but as a way of investigating our human reality.
Contemporary Theology - 15 credits
Explore the interrelationship between theological conceptions of God, the world and politics to see how far these influence our supposedly secular ways of thinking.
Philosophy and Psychoanalysis - 15 credits
In this module we turn to Freud and later psychoanalytic thinkers to investigate whether this discipline's account of the unconscious mind, of dreams, jokes and neuroses might be important, not only as therapy, but as a way of investigating our human reality.
Mapping Mortality - 15 credits
This module introduces you to the various ways in which mortality has been considered, and how societies deal with human death philosophically, theologically and through the lens of religions.
Work Placement for Philosophy, Religion and Ethics - 15 credits
Undertake a placement as an employee or volunteer and develop crucial employability and life skills while thinking critically about your own role within the organisation.
Entry requirements
Our offers are typically made using UCAS tariff points to allow you to include a range of level 3 qualifications and as a guide, the requirements for this course are equivalent to:
- A-Levels: BCC-BBB from 3 A Levels or equivalent grade combinations (e.g. BBB is comparable to ABC in terms of tariff points)
- BTEC/CTEC: DMM from BTEC or Cambridge Technical (CTEC) qualifications
- International Baccalaureate: To include a minimum of 2 Higher Level certificates at grade H4
- T Level: Merit in a T Level
Additionally, we accept tariff points achieved for many other qualifications, such as the Access to Higher Education Diploma, Scottish Highers, UAL Diploma/Extended Diploma and WJEC Applied Certificate/Diploma, to name a few. We also accept tariff points from smaller level 3 qualifications, up to a maximum of 32, from qualifications like the Extended Project (EP/EPQ), music or dance qualifications. To find out more about UCAS tariff points, including what your qualifications are worth, please visit UCAS.
In addition to level 3 study, the following GCSE’s are required:
GCSE English Language at grade 4 or C, or higher. Functional Skills at level 2 is accepted as an alternative, however Key Skills qualifications are not. If you hold another qualification, please get in touch and we will advise further
If you will be over the age of 21 years of age at the beginning of your undergraduate study, you will be considered as a mature student. This means our offer may be different and any work or life experiences you have will be considered together with any qualifications you hold. UCAS have further information about studying as a mature student on their website which may be of interest.
If English is not your first language, a formal English language test will most likely be required and you will need to achieve the following:
- IELTS Academic at 5.5 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in all four components (for year 1 entry)
- We also accept other English language qualifications, such as IELTS Indicator, Pearson PTE Academic, Cambridge C1 Advanced and TOEFL iBT
If you are living outside of the UK or Europe, you can find out more about how to join this course by emailing our International Recruitment Team at International@winchester.ac.uk or calling +44 (0)1962 827023.
2025 Course Tuition Fees
| UK / Channel Islands / Isle of Man / Republic of Ireland |
International |
|
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | £9,250 | £16,700 |
| Year 2 | £9,250 | £16,700 |
| Year 3 | £9,250 | £16,700 |
| Total | £27,750 | £50,100 |
| Optional Sandwich Year* | £1,850 | £3,340 |
| Total with Sandwich Year | £29,600 | £53,440 |
Additional tuition fee information
If you are a UK student starting your degree in September 2025, the first year will cost you £9,250**. Based on this fee level, the indicative fees for a three-year degree would be £27,750 for UK students.
Remember, you don’t have to pay any of this upfront if you are able to get a tuition fee loan from the UK Government to cover the full cost of your fees each year.
UK Part-Time fees are calculated on a pro rata basis of the full-time fee for a 120 credit course. The fee for a single credit is £77.08 and a 15 credit module is £1,156. Part-time students can take up to a maximum 90 credits per year, so the maximum fee in a given year will be the government permitted maximum fee of £6,935.
International part-time fees are calculated on a pro rata basis of the full-time fee for a 120 credit course. The fee for a single credit is £139.14 and a 15 credit module is £2,087.
* Please note that not all courses offer an optional sandwich year.
**The University of Winchester will charge the maximum approved tuition fee per year.
Additional costs
As one of our students all of your teaching and assessments are included in your tuition fees, including, lectures/guest lectures and tutorials, seminars, laboratory sessions and specialist teaching facilities. You will also have access to a wide range of student support and IT services.
There might be additional costs you may encounter whilst studying. The following highlights the mandatory and optional costs for this course:
Optional
Core Texts: Core texts are available from the University Library; however, students will be strongly encouraged in some modules to purchase a copy of a key work that the module focuses on. Some core texts can be bought secondhand, or as an ebook which can reduce this cost. Indicative cost is £100 per academic year.
SCHOLARSHIPS, BURSARIES AND AWARDS
We have a variety of scholarships and bursaries available to support you financially with the cost of your course. To see if you’re eligible, please see our Scholarships and Awards page.
CAREER PROSPECTS
Students also learn a wide range of transferable skills that are highly vlaued by employers. These include critical thinking, gathering and analysing evidence, communication and IT skills, cultural awareness, collaboration and teamwork.
Students are well-equipped to move into teaching, with increasing numbers of students selecting philosophy subjects in secondary school.
Pre-approved for a Masters
University of Winchester students studying Bachelor Honours degrees are pre-approved to start a Masters degree at Winchester. To be eligible students must apply by the end of March in their final year and meet the entry requirements of their chosen Masters degree.
OUR CAREERS SERVICE
“I knew Winchester would give me the freedom to study what I wanted. The department is full of passionate lecturers who truly care about their subjects.”
