The Department of Philosophy, part of the School of Humanities, offers a vibrant environment for study at postgraduate level. All of its staff are research active and publish regularly in the leading journals. Almost all areas of philosophy are studied but with a number of recent appointments we have major strengths in metaphysics, mind, aesthetics and philosophy of language. There is also active research in other core areas, such as ethics and the philosophy of science, as well as some less traditional subjects such as philosophy of film and fiction and philosophy of sport.
Research programmes are delivered through one-to-one supervision with a member of staff with expertise in the subject area. The taught programmes are delivered through a choice of specialised modules with students selecting four subjects from a range of 12. The taught MA is an excellent preparation for further research as it includes a research-training component.
The Department provides dedicated space for research students, including study areas and places for informal contact. There is a weekly departmental research seminar, which is open to all postgraduates, and often hosts internationally famous philosophers. In addition, there is a separate weekly seminar for postgraduates to present their work. The Philosophy Society organises a range of other activities.
For research students, the Graduate Centre offers a comprehensive range of research training courses. Postgraduate students in the Department are also eligible to take the Academic German course, which is offered by the School of Humanities and designed for students with little or no German language experience.
Recent Developments
The Department has increased in size to 18 full-time staff. Its most recent professorial appointments are Daniel Nolan who has published extensively in the areas of metaphysics, philosophy of science, philosophical logic meta-ethics, and the philosophy of David Lewis, Harold Noonan who has published extensively in the philosophy of mind and language, metaphysics, philosophy of logic, the philosophy of Frege and early modern philosophy (his most recent book is on Hume) and Philip Percival, who works primarily on metaphysics, philosophical logic, epistemology and the philosophy of science.
Current Research Projects
There are several exciting research projects underway in the Department. Professor Mumford is one of the leaders (along with Helen Beebee at Birmingham and Alexander Bird at Bristol) of the AHRC funded Metaphysics of Science project, to which are attached at Nottingham a postdoctoral research Fellowship (held by Markus Schrenk) and a PhD studentship (held by Matt Tugby). Causes, laws, dispositions and natural kinds are among the topics being investigated. Daniel Nolan is a 2005 recipient of a 2005 Philip Leverhulme Prize and is currently on research leave pursuing his investigations in a range of topics in analytical metaphysics. Harold Noonan has been awarded a Mind Senior Research Fellowship for the first semester of 2007-8 and will be investigating Kripkean themes concerning naming and necessity. Gregory Currie holds a British Academy Senior Research Fellowship in 2007-8. Other members of staff have regularly received AHRC funded matching study leave to pursue their projects, most recently Stephen Barker and Penelope Mackie.