Starting at the Department of Philosophy

Finding the department

We are located on the second floor in building 2 of the English Park Campus. Go to the main entrance and follow the signs, or use MazeMap.

Communication with the department

Email

Check your university email, not just your private email. We assume that you check university email regularly, and thus assume that you pay attention to information sent there. Important: The Studium e-learning system (see below) does not provide access to university email.

Visiting us

You can of course come to the department and talk to teachers and administrators. The study counselor has fixed times for student services, for all others it is usually best to make an appointment.

Telephone

Some teachers and administrators have an office phone. If so, you can find their number on their contact page.

Teaching facilities

Philosophy teaching takes place at various Uppsala University campuses. It is recommended to use MazeMap to find teaching premises.

English Park

Most meetings are held at the English Park campus, where there is also the philosophy department itself and the Karin-Boye Library, which houses the largest part of the philosophy collection.

University House

Some, usually large meetings take place in the University Main Building. The University Main Building is on the other side of Carolina Park.

Blåsenhus

On the other side of the Botanical Garden is the Blåsenhus. Some few meetings are held there.

Administrators

The course coordinator takes care of, for instance,

• Registration
• Re-registration
• Student counseling

The directors of studies take care of, for instance,

• Credit transfer
• Study assistance

Courses and sub-courses

Aesthetics B and C, Practical Philosophy C and Theoretical Philosophy C are so-called 30-credit courses. These courses require registration, and with registration the studies start automatically.

The 30 credit courses include sub-courses for usually 7.5 credits. If you are registered for the 30-credit course in which a sub-course is included, you do not need to register for the sub-course.

A bit confusingly, some sub-courses are also offered as stand-alone courses, so you can take such a course without taking the other modules included in the 30-credit course. You go to the same classroom and learn the same things whether you take the content as a sub-course or as a stand-alone course.

Elective sub-courses

Sometimes 30-credit courses include various optional sub-courses (e.g. in Practical and Theoretical Philosophy C). Since you do not need to register for the sub-courses if you are registered for the 30-credit course, you also do not need to register for the elective sub-courses. So you can simply participate in the sub-courses (and also try different sub-courses at the beginning to decide later). Your participation is automatically registered when you fulfill the course requirements.

Deregistration

If you are registered for a course and choose not to participate anymore, make a formal withdrawal in Ladok.

Information about a course

More formal information about a course, such as entry requirements (prerequisites), examination form and course objectives, can be found in the official course syllabus. The syllabus often does not change from semester to semester. More detailed information about the course, such as reading instructions, meeting contents, and assignments, can be found on the course page in Studium, Uppsala University's e-learning system.

Course schedule

Schedules for the courses are displayed in TimeEdit. If you do not want to search for the schedule yourself, you can go to the (sub-)course's left menu on the course page in Studium. There is a link to the schedule in TimeEdit.

Unfortunately, TimeEdit can be quite confusing, and TimeEdit's own introduction and tutorial on customizing the appearance of the schedule is not very clear either.

Course literature

If you do not have the course literature, the possibility of passing courses is significantly reduced.

The literature to be acquired is usually listed in the course reading list, which is linked from the course description in the catalog (e.g. for Critical Thinking or Philosophy of Art: What is Art?), which often shows a list of reading lists. The reading list at the top of the list (the reading list valid as of the latest term) is the one that applies.

If the reading list only lists possible texts (in which case the reading list will say “The teacher in charge of the course will make a selection from the following literature”), the texts actually to be used will be announced in Studium at least five weeks before the start of the course. If the information is missing in Studium, please contact the teacher responsible for the course (the teacher responsible for the course is shown in the Studium page under 'Contact').

Course literature that must be purchased is available at Campusbokhandeln and Akademibokhandeln.

Literature that does not need to be purchased (e.g. because it is digitally available through the university) is usually listed on the course's Studium page.

Lectures and seminars

Attendance at lectures is usually not compulsory, but the possibility of passing a course is significantly reduced without attending the lectures. Participation in seminars is usually compulsory. In general, you should attend as many meetings as possible.

We usually apply the academic quarter (cum tempore). For example, if a lecture is noted to take place “10-12”, it means that it starts at 10:15h and ends at 12:00h. Please note: If the minutes are also indicated, then the academic quarter is not applied. So “10:00h-12:00h” means that the event starts at 10:00h and ends at 12:00h.

Some events may take place via Zoom. In this case, you should be aware of the department's netiquette.

Please note that some courses may have sensitive content.

Interacting with your instructors

Pursuing your degree successfully is premised on the ability to talk through the concepts and arguments you are studying. It is perfectly acceptable to approach your instructor, in person or by email, to schedule a brief meeting with them. You and the instructor can then use this meeting to talk through questions you have concerning the course and its content.

Please bear in mind that there are many demands on your instructors’ time. Only a relatively limited number of such meetings will typically be possible, if at all.

How to study

Uppsala University offers a Guide to Study Strategies, including a self-study course. This guide is aimed at students of all subjects.

The Department of Philosophy's Tools for Philosophy contains a lot of material on how to read, do, and write philosophy in particular.

Exams

Exams take place within the course times. Hall exams are almost always digital exams in Inspera; you must register for hall exams in the application for student records, Ladok. Home exams are run in the learning management system Studium. You can see your results in Inspera (for classroom exams), in Studium (for home exams) and on Ladok.

If you have not passed an exam, you will also be given a second chance, which is called a 'retake exam' or 're-exam'.

If you need a special exam due to a disability, there are special rules for adapted examinations.

Cheating and plagiarism

There is a page on cheating and plagiarism on the Philosophy Department's student gateway.

There are many resources for support and services at Uppsala University. Here is a selection:

Resources in Philosophy

The Philosophy Department's student gateway has a list of links to resources in philosophy.

The Library

The library offers reading spaces and group rooms, the possibility to borrow and download books and scientific journals, borrow computers, the possibility to copy, scan and print, courses in information retrieval, reference management, publishing and data processing, and more. The library has many instructional videos.

The language workshop

The Language Workshop offers individual tutoring in academic writing and oral presentations in Swedish and English, as well as study and reading techniques.

Student Health Service

The Student Health Service is here for you to help you with issues related to student life. There is also a national website, studenthälsa.se, where students can get tips and advice on how to feel better.

Resources for exchange studies

The Department of Philosophy's student gateway has a page with more information on studying abroad.

IT services

Uppsala University offers many IT services. Some of the most important ones were already mentioned above.

Uppsala Student Union

Uppsala Student Union is a membership organization that represents the students at Uppsala University.

The Philosophy Students' Association

The Philosophy Students' Association is dedicated to student monitoring, student participation, and study promotion for all who study or have studied at the Department of Philosophy in Uppsala.

Network for Women in Philosophy (NKF)

The Network for Women in Philosophy (NKF) organizes monthly seminars and social events and is open to women and non-binary people at all levels of philosophy studies.

UU Careers

There are many things you can do to meet the job market and shape your career, throughout your studies. UU Careers offers support and guidance.

Student Radio 98.9

The employee-run Studentradio 98,9 broadcasts terrestrial radio and web radio in the Uppsala area. The station offers programs in society, culture, music, and news about Uppsala and student life.