Additional Information
Department
AHD Staff: Philosophy
About the Department
Philosophy is equally concerned with both the true and the good, with what thought is and what it is to think well, as well as with what human life is and how one goes about living well. This means that philosophy has both a theoretical aspect and a practical one. Its theoretical dimension comes most to the fore in the contemporary philosophical landscape in the areas of epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of language, and philosophy of science; its practical aspect in areas such as ethics, political philosophy, and philosophy of law. A third set of questions that elude the practical/theoretical divide concern aesthetic or religious topics. At the University of Chicago, the courses offered by the Department of Philosophy explore this wide variety of questions by drawing on the methodologies of both the analytic and the continental traditions, and by critically examining the ideas developed in the texts that constitute the history of Western philosophy.
The goal of the Undergraduate Program in Philosophy is to equip our students with the skills and knowledge needed to inquire into these fundamental philosophical questions in a systematic and serious way. We aim to help our students to become better readers of philosophical texts, better at understanding the underlying structure of philosophical arguments, and better at writing clear, forceful philosophical prose. To this end, the major requires students to take courses in logic, the history of philosophy, and both practical and theoretical contemporary philosophy; it also gives the students the option of writing a BA thesis under the supervision of a faculty advisor. The philosophy minor allows students whose primary interest is in some other discipline to supplement their major course of study with a (less intensive) pursuit of philosophy, and the allied fields major affords students the opportunity to integrate philosophy with one of a number of adjacent disciplines, such as economics, linguistics, or physics.
Job Summary
Reporting to the Director of Undergraduate Studies, the Instructional Assistant assists faculty, other teaching personnel, and program administrators in their work delivering undergraduate education in the undergraduate program of the Department of Philosophy. The Instructional Assistant has experience completing research and academic work in philosophy or its allied disciplines and is equipped to support undergraduate instruction in capacities that range from substantive, pedagogical, methodological, technological, to administrative. The Instructional Assistant's role comprises a set of responsibilities designed to address the Philosophy department's curricular needs and may differ each quarter. Duties include supporting instruction in specific for-credit PHIL courses or course sequences, advising and mentoring undergraduates conducting independent research, grading assignments and exams, and supporting instructors' use of academic technologies and preparation of course materials.
This position provides instructional support to teachers in one or more subjects while expanding individual knowledge and acquiring higher-level knowledge and skills. Assists the teachers by providing individual instruction, counseling, and other academic services with a moderate level of guidance and direction. Assesses and documents student progress. Prepares lesson plans, course outlines and assignments.
This position is for a limited, two-year term. The annual work period is 9.5 months, from September 1 through June 15, and the salary is paid over 12 months, from September through August.
Uchicago · Hyde Park Campus