Portuguese/Philosophy

Portuguese and philosophy is a combination that develops two quite different but deeply complementary intellectual capacities. Philosophy is the systematic attempt to arrive at clear answers to profound questions about knowledge, morality, the nature of mind, the foundations of science, and what it means to live well, using reason and argument rather than authority or convention. Portuguese opens access to a literary and cultural tradition of extraordinary richness, spanning Portugal, Brazil, Mozambique, Angola, Cape Verde, and other Lusophone communities across the world, and to the distinctive Portuguese-language intellectual and artistic currents, from Fernando Pessoa to Saramago, that form part of any serious engagement with world literature.

At the University of Glasgow, you will develop philosophical rigour and linguistic competence in equal measure. The philosophy strand engages you with the major figures and problems in the discipline, from ancient questions about the nature of reality and the good life to modern debates in epistemology, ethics, and philosophy of mind. The Portuguese strand develops your language skills to a high level, giving you the ability to read literary, philosophical, and contemporary texts in the original and to engage with a world literary tradition from the inside.

The programme runs over five years and includes a placement year and a work placement, giving you structured professional experience that allows you to apply the critical thinking, communication, and language skills you develop in a real-world context.

Graduates from philosophy and language degrees move into careers across a wide range of sectors. The combination of a major world language and rigorous philosophical training is valued in law, education, publishing, journalism, public policy, international development, and the civil service. The languages open particular doors in international organisations and in careers connected to Lusophone countries.

Postgraduate study in philosophy, Portuguese and Lusophone studies, or related humanities disciplines is also a natural route.