Philosophy

Philosophy allows you to consider the big questions in life and teaches you how to analyse and communicate ideas logically, which are skills that many employers value

Job options

Jobs directly related to your degree include:

• Further education teacher
• Higher education lecturer
• Secondary school teacher

Jobs where your degree would be useful include:

• Business analyst
• Chaplain
• Civil Service Fast Streamer
• Health service manager
• Human resources officer
• Local government officer
• Marketing executive
• Newspaper journalist
• Policy officer
• Psychotherapist
• Recruitment consultant
• Social researcher
• Solicitor

Remember that many employers accept applications from graduates with any degree subject, so don't restrict your thinking to the jobs listed here.

Work experience

Completing some short-term paid or voluntary work will improve your prospects of getting a job and can give you valuable insight into how a company or institution operates. It may also help you decide whether you want to work in the public, private or voluntary sector.

The type of work experience you need will depend on the profession you want to enter. For example, if you want to become a teacher, you'll need some classroom experience so contact local schools for opportunities.

For other areas, such as marketing, PR or HR, you may be able to get a summer internship, or some paid part-time work at an entry level. This not only gives you a taste of what the work will be like but also helps to build useful contacts.

Your institution's careers service may have information about work placements and voluntary work opportunities, across a range of sectors.

Search for placements and find out more about work experience and internships.

Typical employers

Philosophy graduates are found working for almost every type of employer in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. Opportunities are available in areas like publishing, the media, journalism, advertising and teaching, through to computing and IT.

Typical employers include:

• local government and the Civil Service
• advertising, marketing and public relations agencies
• management consultancies
• primary and secondary schools, further education colleges and higher education institutions
• law firms
• publishing companies
• charities
• banking and insurance companies
• accountancy firms
• recruitment agencies.

Find information on employers in business, consulting and management, law, marketing, advertising and PR, and other job sectors.

Skills for your CV

Studying philosophy helps you:

• analyse and construct sound arguments
• distinguish fine differences between views and find common ground
• present ideas convincingly through well-constructed, systematic arguments
• write clearly and persuasively
• generate ideas and come up with solutions to problems
• be open to new ideas and ways of thinking.

You also gain general transferable skills including:

• self-motivation and the capacity for independent study and thought
• the ability to prioritise work and meet deadlines
• flexibility and creativity
• critical thinking
• the capacity to identify, absorb and sift complex information
• teamworking
• increased knowledge of IT.

Further study

Some philosophy graduates go on to study philosophy at Masters or PhD level, either with the intention of pursuing a career as a lecturer or simply due to their love of the subject, or both. Other related areas of interest include politics, ethics, international development and sociology.

For careers in law, lecturing and teaching, you'll need further qualifications specific to those areas. In areas such as journalism and advertising, you may find a postgraduate qualification useful, but relevant work experience is essential. Research the careers that interest you to find out if you'll need to take further study.

For more information on further study and to find a course that interests you, see Masters degrees and search postgraduate courses in philosophy.

What do philosophy graduates do?

The top five jobs held by philosophy graduates include teaching professionals, sales, marketing and related associate professionals, business, research and administrative professionals, other elementary services occupations and finance professionals.

Find out what other graduates are doing after finishing their degrees in What do graduates do?

Graduate destinations data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.