In its tenth year of existence the spirit of the CEU Philosophy Program was guided by two complementary principles: an approach to contemporary philosophical problems that is informed by historical awareness; and an approach to history of philosophy that uses the analytic tools of contemporary philosophy. These principles have been reflected both in a wide range of publications by the faculty of the department, and in the curriculum of the program.
During these ten years, in the primary research areas—such as ancient and early modern philosophy, philosophy of mind, moral and political philosophy, and philosophy of language and logic—the department attained wide international recognition. It hosted high profile conferences and summer schools, such as the Symposium Hellenisticum, one of the most prestigious academic events for historians of ancient philosophy; and the annual conference of the European Society of Philosophy of Psychology, the biggest interdisciplinary meeting in Europe for philosophers, psychologists and linguists.
The Department of Philosophy has also participated in numerous international research projects, such as the PETAF project (EC 7th Framework grant under the Marie Curie International Training Network Call), which is the first research and training network exclusively in philosophy ever to be financed by the European Commission, and which involves some of the best analytic philosophy departments in Europe. Research at CEU is organized mostly around the following four areas: questions of metaphysics, both in a contemporary and historical perspective; including, among others, issues about the freedom of the will and ancient philosophy of nature / the philosophy of mind, with special focus on arguments against physicalism and externalism / moral and political philosophy / Cognitive Science.
Until the recent foundation of an independent Department of Cognitive Science at CEU in January 2011, the Cognitive Development Center (CDC) was hosted by the Department of Philosophy. Although separate entities from this time on, the two departments will retain strong working ties in the future.
To mark its tenth anniversary, the Department of Philosophy has organized a two-day international conference on 27-28 January with the participation of outstanding members of the profession who contributed to the CEU philosophy program in the last ten years with seminars, lectures, advice and friendship. The conference was opened by Provost/Pro Rector Katalin Farkas, Professor, Department of Philosophy. Due to great interest, pre-registration for the conference had to be closed days before the conference started. As part of the Anniversary Conference, Ronald Dworkin, Professor of Philosophy/Frank Henry Sommer Professor of Law, New York University delivered a lecture entitled “What Democracy Is.” (Click here to watch the lecture recorded on January 27.)
For the detailed 10th Anniversary Conference Program, containing the names of the speakers and the titles of the lectures, visit http://www.philosophy.ceu.hu/events/2011-01-27/ten-years-of-philosophy-at-central-european-university
The CEU Department of Philosophy offers Master’s and Doctoral level education in the Central and Eastern European region meeting the standards of the best international institutions, in order to train researchers and teachers of philosophy at several levels. The program makes use of the unique dual character of CEU (chartered and accredited in the United States but located in East Central Europe), as this creates an ideal institutional background for a Philosophy program which attempts to combine historical and analytical approaches to philosophy.
Currently, the Department of Philosophy has 13 MA and 45 PhD students coming from 14 different countries.