Philosophy

Although philosophy is generally considered to be a non-vocational degree, many employers value the specific skills that the study of philosophy develops.

Over the course of your degree you develop a wide mix of subject-specific and technical skills, you should consider these skills developed on your course as well as through your other activities, such as paid work, volunteering, family responsibilities, sport, membership of societies, leadership roles, etc. Think about how these can be used as evidence of your skills and personal attributes. Then you can start to market and sell who you really are, identify what you may be lacking and consider how to improve your profile.

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Prospects

In 2010, six months after graduation, nearly half of philosophy graduates were in paid employment in the UK or overseas. Areas of work employing large numbers were business and finance (10%), commercial, industrial and public sector management (10%) and marketing, sales and advertising (8%).

At this stage, almost 30% of those in employment were found in either clerical and secretarial or retail, catering and bar jobs. However, it is unlikely that this pattern will be representative of the long-term destinations of philosophy graduates as, like many arts and humanities graduates, they will often take longer to make career decisions and enter a graduate profession.

Where are the jobs?

Philosophy graduates are found working with almost every type of employer in the public, private and not-for-profit sector. Typical employers include:

• the National Health Service;
• civil service;
• advertising agencies;
• investment banks;
• law firms;
• charities;
• publishing firms;
• recruitment agencies.

For more information on some of the career areas entered by philosophy graduates, consider:

• Legal services - includes work in the court system, firms of solicitors, barristers' chambers (advocates' stables in Scotland), private companies and central and local government;
• Government and public administration - incorporating a huge range of opportunities within the civil service and local government;
• Banking, investment and insurance - includes the activities of banks and investment banks and markets, as well as roles in insurance.

Jobs directly related to your degree

Apart from teaching philosophy at secondary level or in further or higher education (Secondary school teacher, Further education lecturer and Higher education lecturer), there are no jobs where philosophy is an essential requirement. However, the skills gained from the study of philosophy are in demand by graduate employers in a range of jobs and sectors.

Jobs where your degree would be useful

• Advertising account planner
• Barrister
• Civil Service fast streamer
• Health Service manager
• Investment analyst
• Newspaper journalist
• Psychotherapist
• Recruitment consultant
• Software engineer
• Commercial solicitor/Non-commercial solicitor
• Stockbroker

Most of the jobs above require further qualifications, training or experience.

Although some of the jobs listed here might not be first jobs for many graduates, they are among the many realistic possibilities with your degree, provided you can demonstrate you have the attributes employers are looking for. Bear in mind that it's not just your degree discipline that determines your options. Remember that many graduate vacancies don't specify particular degree disciplines, so don't restrict your thinking to the jobs listed here.

You can find more about the skills you develop during your course, the jobs listed above, plus case studies and where to find these jobs at Prospects.

Included with the permission of AGCAS. For the latest version of this publication, see www.prospects.ac.uk. For permission to reproduce, contact copyright@agcas.org.uk