The Engine of The New New Zealand

Philosophy

The biggest and most obvious questions have probably already occurred to you: “Why are we here? What’s our purpose in life? Do we even have one? How can I be sure that anything is real and I’m not actually just a brain in a jar?”

No one has found an answer to these questions that satisfies everyone – you can’t please all the people all the time – but philosophy can at least help you to arrive at an answer that makes more sense than “42”.

Philosophy is all those questions that you think about when you are a kid and are told not to be silly.

“I remember as a kid thinking: is the room really still there when I shut the door and I can’t see it anymore? And how would I know if it wasn’t, given that I have to look to find out?” says philosopher Bill Fish. “It’s just when you ask those questions as a kid you get told ‘of course it is, don’t be silly’.”

Bill says that one of the difficult things about philosophy is how to test how ‘good’ you are at it.

“There are right and wrong ways of going about it, but no right or wrong answers. It’s about thinking and it’s about reasons. About being able to explain why you think something. That’s a vital life skill, in both work and at home.”

Actually, philosophical skills are very Kiwi skills. Our reputation is using our ingenuity to come up with new ways of doing things – or doing things that ‘can’t be done’. That’s also what philosophy is about. The problems are more intellectual than practical, but it fits perfectly. We can ask why and how of the idea that this is what Kiwis are and this is what Kiwis do. Is that the best way, or is there another way?

Find out what career you can have and how you can do it too.

What career will I have?

Philosophy doesn’t have a great reputation for being the kind of degree that will get you a job. But actually the opposite is true, says Bill.

Just like there’s usually no rights and wrongs when it comes to philosophy, there’s no straight career path. But it’s a life skill that is useful for anything!

“Well, obviously not things like dentistry or vet,” says Bill Fish, Associate Professor of Philosophy at Massey. “But outside of that – the set of skills you get from a Humanities degree are just one of the best packages of skills you could take with you for doing anything you like.”

Philosophy teaches critical thinking skills. It helps you set up a good process for evaluating claims and reasons – for weighing up two sides of the situation. It’s also very creative, giving students the opportunity to think about things differently. It teaches:

• Leftfield thinking – unusual approaches to problems
• Expansive thinking – thinking outside the normal constraints

Studying philosophy can give you experience in handling unusual and difficult ideas, communicating your thinking with clarity, and being aware of the reasons for your views while being flexible and adaptive. This will enable you to cope with new challenges as the needs of your work change. That kind of adaptability and the ability to “think on your feet” will come in handy in careers in administration, advertising, journalism, management, policy analysis, research, and many more.

Recent graduates in philosophy have gone into jobs as diverse as computing, teaching, treasury, publishing and business. Their experience in handling unusual and difficult ideas, communicating their thinking with clarity, being aware of the reasons for their views but also being flexible and adaptive, make them able to cope with new challenges as the needs of their work change.

Find out how you can do it too!

How can I do it too?

If you are interested in philosophy, study options at Massey include a Bachelor of Arts and a Graduate Diploma in Arts(if you have already completed tertiary study) in Classical Studies, History or Philosophy.

Philosopher Bill Fish says to take your time deciding what you want to do.
“One of the things I’d want to get across to those who are about to go to university, thinking about tertiary study…don’t feel bad if you don’t know what you want to do. Look around and take some courses. If you don’t know what you want to do for a job afterwards, do something you love, do something you are interested in.”

Entry into Massey’s philosophy programme has no special requirements beyond those needed for admission to the university. You’ll be better off if you have a firm grasp on English, however, and any subjects that train you to think critically and analytically will certainly help.

The Bachelor of Arts is a great way to pursue knowledge in a wide range of areas. The three-year degree is really flexible, allowing you to focus on one subject where you may have a real passion, but also include a number of other subjects in your degree so you can follow varied interests.

Find out more about the School of Philosophy at Massey and the Bachelor of Arts.

Debunking the myths of studying philosophy

• “It’s Easy” – ”Philosophy is a really challenging subject,” says Bill. “You need to think on your feet and think laterally.”
• “There is no direct career path to anything” – Wrong! Bill says philosophy will pretty much allow you to do anything.

“There was a really interesting study done around 2008 in the UK where the Higher Education Council asked graduate employers to rank the skills they really wanted from graduates – and then rank the skills they thought their graduates came with. Basically to identify where there are gaps between what they want and what they get.

“They produced a table of the desirable skills, and three of the top four – analytical skills, verbal and written communication skills – are skills that, in other studies, philosophy has been shown to be one of the very best subjects for producing.”

Bill Fish is in the top ten philosophers in his field. Find out more about his story, and what type of job you could get with a philosophy degree.

Or feel free to get in touch with us if you have more questions.

Why Massey?

New Zealand – again – punches above its weight.

“Every single university philosophy department in the country has international people as part of their staff,” says Bill, “and we are very strong on research.”

Philosophy is New Zealand’s top research discipline according to the last governmental review of university research in 2006.

NZ has had some huge name philosophers over the years. Not only that, there are a lot of Kiwi philosophers out there outside NZ doing really well, too. Bill says philosophy in New Zealand has an excellent international profile. “To be honest, if it hadn’t, I probably would not have come here.” He also says the Massey degree has a good reputation: “I think there’s a lot of respect out there in the philosophical community in NZ for what we achieve.”