Electives

Probably the most confusing thing in the examination regulations is that there is one "Electives" module (EM) in the compulsory modules and that you also have to choose two out of six elective modules, also called "Wahlpflichtmodule" in german. This is obviously very confusing, so I try to make it a little clearer here. Also please have a look at the graphics below.

The "Electives" Module (EM, marked in pink) is a flexible module that allows you to take courses from university that fit your individual focus in Philosophy. Its description from the module catalogue is the following:

"This module is designed to be adaptable to individual student’s background and prior training and thus allows

maximal flexibility in the choice of classes:

• Students with prior training in philosophy but no previous exposure to university-level science classes are

encouraged (but not required) to take classes in a relevant scientific field of their interest at the

undergraduate level.

• Students with little prior training in philosophy are encouraged (but not required) to take introductory

philosophy classes (such as introduction to ethics, history of philosophy and/or epistemology, metaphysics,

philosophy of mind and language) at the undergraduate level.

• International students who do not have the requisite level of German to enroll in introductory science or

philosophy classes in German should seek out philosophy or science classes (at either the undergraduate or

graduate level) that are taught in English."

If you want to take a course for the Module, you have to sign up for the course "Elective - Module" on Stud.IP with Uljana Feest. The course is designed to find the right courses for your personal focus. There's more information in this document.

In the "Elective Modules" (marked in blue) section, you can choose two of the six modules to complete to finish the programme. The choice is to be made between

• Ethics and Philosophy of Science (EPS),

• Philosophy of the Physical Sciences (PPS),

• History and Philosophy of the Human Sciences (HPHS),

• Philosophy of the Life Sciences (PLS),

• Vertiefungsmodul zu einem systematischen Schwerpunkt (VMs), and

• Vertiefungsmodul zu einem historischen Schwerpunkt (VMh).

You need to complete two of them in the same way you complete the compulsory modules, by doing a "Studienleistung" in every seminar and one "Prüfungsleistung" per module.