Degree Path

The Philosophy pathway retains the 33-credit Philosophy major while adding the Politics and Economics components. The PPE concentration defines 12 credits within Philosophy while preserving additional room for Philosophy coursework.

This table focuses on the PPE and is schematic. Use the official catalog and advising materials for the complete approved elective lists, prerequisites, substitutions, and catalog-year rules.

The Political Science pathway retains the Political Science and International Politics BA while directing part of its Government coursework toward PPE and adding Philosophy and Economics. Students retain substantial choice within PPE: apart from foundational and culminating courses, they may choose from more than 20 approved electives across the three fields.

This table focuses on the PPE and is schematic. Use the official catalog and advising materials for the complete approved elective lists, prerequisites, substitutions, and catalog-year rules.

The Economics BA pathway keeps the Economics foundation while reducing the amount of required Economics coursework to create room for deeper study in Philosophy and Government. Students retain substantial choice within PPE: apart from foundational and culminating courses, they may choose from more than 20 approved electives across the three fields.

This table focuses on the PPE and is schematic. Use the official catalog and advising materials for the complete approved elective lists, prerequisites, substitutions, and catalog-year rules.

The Economics BS pathway retains its quantitative foundation while reducing the amount of required Economics and computing coursework to create room for deeper study in Philosophy and Government. Students retain substantial choice within PPE: apart from foundational and culminating courses, they may choose from more than 20 approved electives across the three fields.

This table focuses on the PPE and is schematic. Use the official catalog and advising materials for the complete approved elective lists, prerequisites, substitutions, and catalog-year rules.

No, PPE is designed to fit within the 120 credits required for a bachelor’s degree. PPE is not a second program added on top of the major. It uses part of the home major’s coursework and elective space to create an integrated pathway across Philosophy, Politics and Government, and Economics.

Planning and declaring PPE early is important to use credits efficiently and remain on track for graduation.

PPE is a coordinated interdisciplinary curriculum, not three separate credentials assembled independently. Its foundational courses, approved electives, three culminating courses, and co-curricular events are designed to connect Philosophy, Politics and Government, and Economics around shared real-world questions.

PPE requires fewer designated credits than completing a major and two minors. For Philosophy and Political Science majors, PPE adds 24 credits outside the home major. For Economics majors, it adds roughly 15–18 credits because some Economics requirements and electives are redirected toward Philosophy and Government. By comparison, two Mason minors usually require 30–42 credits in total.

PPE can be combined with one or more minors. Courses completed for PPE may satisfy some of a related minor’s requirements, meaning that only a small number of additional courses may be needed. This advantage is especially strong for Economics students: PPE redirects some Economics coursework toward Philosophy and Government, and those courses may also count toward a Philosophy- or Politics-related minor. PPE students majoring in Economics can therefore make progress toward a minor without adding the full minor curriculum on top of the Economics major.

All PPE students share the same overall PPE structure: the concentration includes a 12-credit component in each discipline and the same required foundational and culminating courses. Students retain substantial choice, with more than 25 approved elective options across the three fields. Some approved elective lists vary by home major, allowing students to shape the curriculum around their principal field.

PPE is particularly well suited for students considering law school, public policy, government, consulting, journalism, advocacy, public service, technology governance, and graduate study.

Students learn to:

• evaluate arguments about justice, rights, and legitimacy;
• analyze incentives, evidence, markets, and unintended consequences;
• understand political institutions, law, bureaucracy, and public policy;
• write and communicate clearly about contested public questions.

The program also connects academic work to practice. Through Washington-based courses, guest speakers, public lectures, and conversations with practitioners, students examine how decisions are made in government, law, journalism, policy organizations, and other institutions. This combination of analytical rigor, interdisciplinary breadth, and engagement with real-world problems makes PPE a strong pre-law pathway and preparation for careers requiring judgment across legal, political, economic, and ethical dimensions.