Philosophy, Politics & Economics
Bachelor Degree (B.A.) in Philosophy, Politics & Economics
A PATH FOR FUTURE LEADERS
The Philosophy, Politics & Economics (PPE) degree at Belmont Abbey College is based on the University of Oxford’s PPE program that has produced many presidents, prime ministers, and other world leaders. In small classes with dedicated professors, you will cultivate knowledge across these three disciplines, specialize in one of them, and focus on a skill such as language, mathematics, or international relations. Courses on logic and ethics, constitutional law, micro- and macroeconomics, and more will teach you how to reason at a high level about political and economic decisions. Our program is ideal for future political leaders and lawyers, and for anyone to develop skills to succeed in graduate school and to climb organizational ladders.
Possible career paths:
Politics, government, diplomacy, law, business and finance, teaching, consulting
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$57k
Average Salary For Philosophy, Politics & Economics Majors
Curriculum
In addition to the specific requirements listed in the section below, all students at the Abbey are required to earn credits in our core liberal arts curriculum.
The Core Curriculum (49-50 Hours):
Please reference the Core Curriculum Requirements.
PH 200: Intro to Philosophy: Ancient & Medieval
PH 250: Justice and the Good Society
Honors College students must also take PO 315.
Philosophy Requirements (9 Hours):
PH 250: Ethics
EC 352: Business Econ & Catholic Social Thought
PO 202: Logic
OR
HO 203: Trivium I
Catholic Social Thought courses: TH 340 Catholic Social Teaching, EC 352 Business Economy & Catholic Social Thought, or other such courses with the approval of the Chair of Philosophy.
Politics Requirements (9 Hours):
The following Honors courses count toward the PO elective requirement: HO 311, HO 312, HO 314, HO 316, HO 403, HO 407, and HO 410.
PO 309: Constitutional Law
PO 310: Civil Rights and Civil Liberties
At least 1 course from among Government and Political Philosophy (PO) courses at the 300- or 400-level.
Economics Requirements (9 Hours):
EC 201: Introductory Economics I
EC 202: Introductory Economics II
At least 1 course from among Economics (EC) courses at the 300- or 400-level.
Capstone Requirements (6 Hours):
With the Program Director’s approval, the Senior Thesis may be replaced by a rigorous internship in Criminal Justice (CJ), Economics (EC), Politics (PO), or Philosophy (PH) together with a public presentation of PPE-related learning during the internship. The PPE Senior Thesis fulfills the Honors College Senior Thesis requirement. (Students are never required to write two senior theses, and Honors College students majoring in PPE are required to write a senior thesis in one of PH, PO, or EC.)
PE 300: PPE Seminar Contemporary Problems
EC 490W: Senior Thesis
OR
PH 470: Senior Thesis
OR
PO 490W: Senior Thesis
Senior Thesis: In one of PH, PO, or EC.
Required Minor (9 Hours):
Complete a required minor by declaring a minor and completing 9 additional credit hours in one of the following disciplines: Philosophy (PH), Politics (PO), Economics (EC), or International Relations.
Honors courses taken to satisfy Honors College requirements cannot count towards these required 9 credit hours.
Electives (25-28 Hours):
We encourage taking an additional minor or electives in History (HI), Public Speaking, Moot Court, and model UN.
Minors: It is recommended that students pursue a minor. Students may minor in one of the three branches (Philosophy, Politics, or Economics) by taking at least 9 additional credit hours in that area.
PH301 The Good Life
How should humans live? Explore the main approaches to ethics as represented by Aristotle, Aquinas, Kant, Mill, and Nietzsche, and apply these approaches to contemporary issues.
PO361 American Political Thought I
Study the political ideas of American statesmen and thinkers such as Jefferson, Franklin, Madison, Hamilton, and Calhoun.
EC317 Intermediate Microeconomics
Learn the foundations of economic analysis in this course on price theory, with applications to labor, commodities, and financial markets.
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