Philosophy (BA)
Cardiff University
Student rating
This is the overall rating calculated by averaging all live reviews for this uni on Whatuni.
( 4.4) View reviews

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Different course options
2 options available
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Qualification

Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)

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Location

Main Site - Cardiff

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Study mode

Full Time

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Start date

SEP-25

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Duration

3 Years

Course info

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Qualification

Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)

Location

Main Site - Cardiff

Study mode

Full Time

Start date

SEP-25

Duration

3 Years

SELECTED

Qualification

Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)

Location

Cathays Park Campus

Study mode

Full Time

Start date

SEP-25

Duration

3 Years

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Subjects

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Philosophy
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A level
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Extended Project
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International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
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Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
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T Level
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Welsh Baccalaureate - Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate (first teaching September 2015)
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Location

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England
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Scotland
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Wales
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Northern Ireland
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EU
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Course info

Our BA Philosophy degree investigates important and complex issues like these and enables you to address todays great global challenges. Our priority lies in developing your skills as a philosopher in your own right: youll be doing philosophy, not merely learning about philosophy. Well support you to engage critically and creatively with difficult problems in an open-minded and collaborative way, including on sensitive and controversial topics.During your studies, youll have the opportunity to ...Read more

Our BA Philosophy degree investigates important and complex issues like these and enables you to address todays great global challenges. Our priority lies in developing your skills as a philosopher in your own right: youll be doing philosophy, not merely learning about philosophy. Well support you to engage critically and creatively with difficult problems in an open-minded and collaborative way, including on sensitive and controversial topics.

During your studies, youll have the opportunity to engage with cutting-edge research and work with your lecturers to develop insights into complex new areas of study. Our expertise covers a broad range of philosophical topics and traditions. Youll develop a solid grounding in central areas of philosophy, such as ethics, epistemology, and philosophy of mind, but also study areas such as aesthetics, feminist philosophy, and phenomenology.

Many of our modules directly address contemporary problems facing society, providing you with a clear link between philosophical theory and practice. This is emphasised in the final year of the programme, where youll take part in a project to apply your own philosophical knowledge and ideas to develop policies or strategies aimed at solving a real-world ethical or social problem.

Youll graduate with a range of professional skills, including collaboration, effective communication and critical thinking. You will also have developed a deeper appreciation of the ethical and social challenges that face contemporary society and industry and have both the ideas and the confidence required to solve them. From here, youll be ideally placed to progress into a range of exciting careers.

Career prospects

Graduates from our Philosophy (BA) degree possess a range of transferable skills and areas of knowledge that are sought after by many employers.

These include the ability to independently analyse complex problems and identify workable and innovative solutions, to work effectively with others on large projects, to communicate effectively with different audiences, and to use reflection and feedback to further develop your skills. Youll also acquire a broad knowledge base enabling you to understand and respond to a range of contemporary ethical or social problems. During your degree, you will have gained experience of professional research, policy and strategy roles by working on a large collaborative policy project. This project showcases to employers how your philosophical skills and your philosophical knowledge can be of enormous value in the workplace.

University services and schemes are also available to you, providing additional ways to increase your professional skills and confidence. The Cardiff Award provides a framework through which to develop your employability further, and Student Futures is on hand to provide career advice and support in gaining placements specific to your degree. You can also take advantage of programmes like Languages For All and Welsh For All to improve your language skills, while support from the Enterprise and Start Up team to bring your ideas to life.

Due to the depth and breadth of their skills and knowledge, our graduates can be found in a variety of sectors, including the civil service, local government, charitable organisations, small businesses, consultancy firms, and schools and colleges. They work in journalism, law, teaching, finance, marketing, human resources, public relations, and many other professions.

Key stats

WUSCA ranking:
WUSCA student ranking
These are the 2024 rankings, based on ratings given by past and current students.
22/101
CUG Subject Ranking
CUG Subject Ranking
Source: Complete University Guide 2025
24th
CUG Ranking
CUG Ranking
Source: Complete University Guide 2025
27th
Philosophy
Drop-out rate
Drop-out rate
The percentage of students who didn't finish the course.
Calculated by 100% - (% of students continuing course + % of students completed course)
100 - 85 = 15% Drop-out rate Source: UNISTATS, 2019
15%
Employment rate
Employment rate
The percentage of students in full-time work 6 months after finishing their course.
Source: UNISTATS, 2019
91%
Average salary
Average salary
Source: UNISTATS, 2019
Philosophy graduate salary at this uni
£18,000
UK Philosophy graduate salary
£19,000
What students say
H
Hannah
05 Mar 25

There definitely need to be more than just drinking socials for societies , because others who don’t like or can’t drink alcahol miss out especially if they don’t like clubbing...Read more

D
Dan
17 Feb 25

Worst aspects was the absurd location for one of the accommodations. The best has been the ease of accessing lecturers for support..Read more

Modules

Modules (Year 1)
Modules (Year 2)
Modules (Year 3)
IDP Connect

Entry requirements

Exam type

A level

A level:

BBC - ABB Grades / Points required

Extended Project:

A Grades / Points required

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme:

32 - 30 Grades / Points required

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016):

DDM - DMM Grades / Points required

T Level:

Not currently available, please contact university for up to date information.

Welsh Baccalaureate - Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate (first teaching September 2015):

Not currently available, please contact university for up to date information.

Not currently available, please contact university for up to date information.

For applicants taking the EPQ qualification, an A in the EPQ can be recognised to lower the entry requirements by a single grade. For example, an AAB offer would be "AAB from 3 A-levels or ABB from 3 A-levels and a grade A in the EPQ". Please note that any subject specific requirements must be met.

32-30 overall or 665-655 in 3 HL subjects.

in a BTEC Extended Diploma in any subject.

Acceptance of T Levels for this programme will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the Academic School. Consideration will be given to the T Level grade/subject and grades/subjects achieved at GCSE/Level 2.

The Welsh Baccalaureate Skills Challenge Certificate will be accepted in place of one A-level at the A-level grades specified, excluding any subject specific requirements.

Popular A-level subjects

Philosophy

Top 5 A-levels taken by students who study this subject at uni.

Psychology
57%
Religious Studies & Theology
32%
Biology
31%
History
27%
English Literature
24%
HESA

Tuition fees

Students living in

England

£9,000 per year

This information comes from UCAS, or in some cases the institution directly.
Please note: fees do vary so please make sure you contact the institution for up to date information.

Students from England

This is the fee you pay if you live within England. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

This is the fee you pay if you live within England. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

£9,000 per year

This information comes from UCAS, or in some cases the institution directly.
Please note: fees do vary so please make sure you contact the institution for up to date information.

Students from Scotland

This is the fee you pay if you live within Scotland. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

This is the fee you pay if you live within Scotland. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

£9,000 per year

This information comes from UCAS, or in some cases the institution directly.
Please note: fees do vary so please make sure you contact the institution for up to date information.

Students from Wales

This is the fee you pay if you live within Wales. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

This is the fee you pay if you live within Wales. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

£9,000 per year

This information comes from UCAS, or in some cases the institution directly.
Please note: fees do vary so please make sure you contact the institution for up to date information.

Students from Northern Ireland

This is the fee you pay if you live within Northern Ireland. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

This is the fee you pay if you live within Northern Ireland. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

£9,000 per year

This information comes from UCAS, or in some cases the institution directly.
Please note: fees do vary so please make sure you contact the institution for up to date information.

Students from Channel Islands

This is the fee you pay if you live within Channel Islands. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

This is the fee you pay if you live within Channel Islands. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

£22,700 per year

This information comes from UCAS, or in some cases the institution directly.
Please note: fees do vary so please make sure you contact the institution for up to date information.

Students from EU

This is the fee you pay if you live within the European Union. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

This is the fee you pay if you live within the European Union. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

£22,700 per year

This information comes from UCAS, or in some cases the institution directly.
Please note: fees do vary so please make sure you contact the institution for up to date information.

Students from International

This is the fee you pay if you are an International student. Please note, this fee has been confirmed.

£22700 Per year

UCAS/IDP Connect

Latest reviews

Latest Philosophy reviews

Philosophy
Philosophy
H
Hannah
05 Mar 25
Philosophy (BA)
There definitely need to be more than just drinking socials for societies , because others who don’t like or can’t drink alcahol miss out especially if they don’t like clubbing....
Read more
D
Dan
17 Feb 25
Philosophy (BA)
Worst aspects was the absurd location for one of the accommodations. The best has been the ease of accessing lecturers for support...
Read more
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How Philosophy students rated:

Student rating
( 4.1) 31 reviews
5 star
20%
4 stars
74%
3 stars
3%
2 stars
0%
1 star
3%

How all students rated:

Student rating
( 4.4) 3,813 reviews
5 star
51%
4 stars
43%
3 stars
6%
2 stars
0%
1 star
0%
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Uni info

Cardiff University
30-36 Newport Road Cardiff CF24 0DE United Kingdom
Nearest train station: Cardiff Queen Street  0.1 miles away
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