I have been admitted to the combined degree program joining school of arts and sciences and SMFA at Tufts. I am planning to pursue a humanities subject as my academic major. I am currently interested in philosophy, psychology (tho it’s not a humanities subject), and English (esp. creative writing).
However, I’ve only heard people talking about IR, computer science, engineering and premed when they speak of Tufts. I would like to hear more about the humanities subjects at Tufts if anyone is willing to offer me some insights. (E.g.: how they are taught, how the programs are generally perceived in the academia…)
Thank you very much! Would you be able to provide me with more details? I heard that Tufts philosophy is very analytical and logic-oriented to a degree that most of the curriculum can be almost perceived as being more “techy” or “mathy” than “essential / big-questions-oriented.” Is that mostly true?
And what makes you say that the English department is good.
Again thank you for your input! It’s much appreciated!
Tufts philosophy Dept does not have a Phd program, so it does not appear in the research university rankings. It is generally regarded as the top terminal masters program in the country
Tufts’ Cognitive and Brain Science major (which is an interdisciplinary major that includes philosophy and computer science) has an international reputation, which could influence the perception of the philosophy department in general.
The most visible person in the philosophy department (who is one of the top living philosophers in the world) is both a cognitive scientist and a philosopher. His areas of expertise are philosophy of mind and philosophy of science. He views the subject of philosophy of mind through the lens of science (evolution and neuroscience) and is critical of some traditional approaches, but I would not consider his approach at all “mathy”. Consistent with his approach he tends to explain the conscious mind in more concrete terms. He is also considered one of the “Four Horseman of Atheism” which makes him controversial in some circles. He just published a book on the evolution of minds called “From Bacteria to Bach and Back”. I just got a copy, and have not read it yet, but I don’t see a single math formula in it. Of course the field of logic is “mathy”, but that is true at any school. I think you will need to come to your own conclusion on this, but I will provide some links to help you determine if it is a good fit for you.
Here is a list of areas of strength of the Philosophy Department (as perceived by themselves).