The STE major requirements are designed around the synergy of ethical literacy and scientific literacy. Critical assessment of the ethical, legal, and social implications of scientific research or technological development can be especially incisive when it is grounded in an understanding of technical detail. For lower division requirements, students take an introductory course in ethics, along with statistics, an introduction to the historical, philosophical, and social scientific study of science and technology (“broad sense” STS), and lower-division STEM prerequisites. Upper division requirements give students depth in both philosophy and a STEM field of their choice. Students take a minimum of four philosophy courses, in value theory (ethics, social, and political philosophy) and philosophy of science and technology. Two additional electives can be used to give further depth in philosophy, or for cross-disciplinary training in other fields of broad sense STS. On the STEM side, students are required to take at least 12 upper division units (roughly three courses) from a single program in the STEM disciplines of SSHA, SNS, or SOE. The program culminates in a capstone in which students apply their knowledge to an independent research project that combines their ethical and scientific knowledge.
Total requirements: 56–60 units
Completing the program typically requires a total of 2–6 courses (8–24 units) of lower-division STEM prerequisites, which typically partially or completely satisfy the Approaches to Knowledge Area A: Life and Physical Science requirement.
Lower division requirements (12–13 units)
PHIL 006: Introduction to Science, Technology, and Ethics (4 units)
Introductory Ethics: One of the following (4 units)
- PHIL 002: Introduction to Ethics
- PHIL 003: Contemporary Moral Problems
Statistics: One of the following (4–5 units)
- ECON 010: Statistical Inference
- MATH 015: Introduction to Scientific Data Analysis
- MATH 018: Statistics for Scientific Data Analysis
- MATH 032: Probability and Statistics
- PH 010: Introduction to Biostatistics
- PSY 010: Analysis of Psychological Data
Upper division requirements (44–47 units)
STE or Philosophy Writing in the Discipline course (4 units)
- WRI 115: Special Topics in Science Writing
- PHIL 171/COGS 160: Free Will in Philosophy and Cognitive Science
- PHIL 172/COGS 161: Experimental Philosophy
- PHIL 173/COGS 162: Consciousness in Philosophy and Cognitive Science
Value Theory: Two of the following (8 units)
- PHIL 104: Ethical Theory
- PHIL 108: Political Philosophy
- PHIL 109: Philosophy of Law
- PHIL 128: Human Rights
- PHIL 170: Philosophy, Politics and Economics
Philosophy of Science and Technology: Two of the following (8 units)
- PHIL 106: Philosophy of Science
- PHIL 110: Philosophy of Cognitive Science
- PHIL 111: Philosophy of Neuroscience
- PHIL 119: Topics in Philosophy of Science
- PHIL 123: Technology Ethics
STE Electives: Two of the following (8 units)
- Any course satisfying the “Value Theory” or “Philosophy of Science and Technology” requirement, not already counted
- PHIL 122: Bioethics
- PHIL 126: Environmental Philosophy and Politics
- PHIL 171/COGS 160: Free Will in Philosophy and Cognitive Science
- PHIL 172/COGS 161: Experimental Philosophy
- PHIL 173/COGS 162: Consciousness in Philosophy and Cognitive Science
- ANTH 120: Introduction to Medical Anthropology
- ANTH 150: Race and Human Variation
- ENG 123 Literature and Animal Studies
- ENG 125 Ecology and Indigenous Religious Traditions
- ENG 130 Writing to Save the Planet
- ENG 167 Theatre and Ecology
- ENG 183 Literature and Queer Ecology
- PH 103: Health Communication
- SOC 145: Sociology of Health
- WRI 115: Topics in Science Writing
- Other courses offered in SSHA or by the MIST program with written approval from the Program Director
STEM: (12–15 units)
At least 12 upper-division units across at least 3 courses offered by the same STEM program in SSHA, SoE, or SNS. Approved courses are listed below, and students may petition the STE Program Director for approval of other courses not listed.
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- BIO 110: The Cell
- BIO 118: Gene Editing Research Lab
- BIO 119: Animal Microbiome Research Lab
- BIO 140: Genetics
- BIO 141: Evolution
- BIO 148: Fundamentals of Ecology
- ESS 100: Environmental Chemistry in Natural Sciences
- ESS 110: Hydrology and Climate
- ESS 113: Sustainability in the Anthropocene
- ESS 148: Fundamentals of Ecology
- ESS 149: Conservation Biology
- ESS 170: Fundamentals of Soil Science
- ESS 170L: Soil Science Laboratory
- MATH 141: Linear Analysis 1
- MATH 146: Numerical Linear Algebra
- MATH 180: Modern Applied Statistics
- PH 100: Introduction to Epidemiology
- PH 103: Health Communication
- PH 110: Environmental Health
- PH 112: Research Methods: Health Services Research and Public Health
PHIL 189: STE Capstone: (4 units)
- A Spring term Culminating Experience course that requires students to complete an independent research project combining their ethical and scientific knowledge.
