As a quick skim through any newspaper or social media feed reveals, contemporary societies face many complex, large-scale challenges that have no easy solutions, such as climate change, police violence, terrorism, and world poverty. While these challenges may all seem very different, they each force us to confront ethical questions: what is morally right and wrong? Individuals also face troubling ethical issues with no obvious answers in their personal and professional lives. While people often want to tackle these problems responsibly, they may lack the tools they need to constructively reflect on ethical dilemmas and understand how these issues affect other people. Beginning in Summer 2021, the Ethics and Society certificate will teach undergraduate students how to analyze and effectively address ethical problems in society and the professions.
Created collaboratively by the UF Departments of Religion and Philosophy, the certificate requires students to think about ethical issues from an interdisciplinary perspective. Participants will learn about major theoretical approaches and issues from philosophical and religious ethics, which will enable them to develop the skills needed to analyze ethical issues in public life. The certificate will also enable students to learn about contemporary moral issues in their own disciplines, such as business, engineering, environmental studies, and medicine. This career-oriented ethics training will help participants incorporate their moral values into their professional lives.
All current UF undergraduate students in any major who have at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA can pursue the certificate. Students minoring in Religion or Philosophy are eligible for the certificate so long as no more than one of their certificate courses are counted towards their minor. The certificate requires 12 credits total, including PHI 3650: Moral Philosophy and REL 3171: Ethics in America. Additional electives will be chosen from an approved list, in consultation with the certificate advisor, Professor Anna Peterson (annap@ufl.edu). Students are encouraged to take approved courses related to their own disciplines, such as BUL 4443: Ethics in Global Business or MMC 3203: Ethics and Problems in Mass Communication.
The Ethics and Society certificate emerges from the work of the UF Mellon Intersections Group on Ethics in the Public Sphere. Students who are currently pursuing the Intersections Scholars program with a focus on Ethics in the Public Sphere may count their eligible courses towards the Ethics and Society Certificate and complete both programs. More information about the UF Ethics and Society Certificate will be available in May 2021 via the UF Department of Religion, UF Ethics in the Public Sphere, and UF Registrar Website.