Our graduate program was among the first in the United States to concentrate on phenomenology and, more broadly, nineteenth and twentieth century continental thought. We remain committed to that tradition and focus on post-Kantian European philosophy, with multiple faculty working in German Idealism, the phenomenological traditions, social and political philosophy, psychoanalytic theory, as well as structuralism, poststructuralism, and their aftermaths. We integrate this into a broader emphasis on the history of philosophy as a cluster of research areas in their own right, as a set of methodological orientations, and as the necessary background for work in contemporary thought. To this end, we also have groups of faculty working in each of the main periods the history of philosophy, including ancient and classical philosophy, medieval philosophy, and modern philosophy.

The mission of the M.A. program in philosophy is to prepare students with strong backgrounds in philosophy and allied fields to successfully obtain admission to more advanced degree programs (especially Ph.D. programs in philosophy and related areas) or to launch careers in other fields.

Our department hosts an active and vibrant philosophical community, including an extensive visiting speakers series and graduate research colloquium, student and faculty organized reading groups, and a strong graduate student organization. Information on recent events, visiting speakers, and the Graduate Students in Philosophy organization may be found below.

Our graduate program is built around small seminars that engage primary texts and conceptual problems. We strongly encourage reading philosophical works in their original languages, when possible, and place a premium on our students developing a high level of competence in the languages related to their doctoral research. To that end, we offer substantial support for our graduate students to pursue language study at Duquesne and through intensive summer language programs abroad.

M.A. students take a minimum of 30 graduate course credit hours (10 courses). These must include at least a minimum of one in ancient philosophy, one in medieval philosophy, one in modern philosophy, and one in contemporary philosophy (note: not all graduate courses offered by the department fall into one of these categories). M.A. students normally complete their coursework in two years, taking 9 credits (3 courses) each semester during their first two years and 6 credits (2 courses) each semester during their second year. Part-time M.A. students may follow an extended or alternative schedule.