Introduction

The Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at Nanjing University (NJU) is widely recognized to be amongst the best in China. We offer a wide range of courses in various branches of philosophy, with strengths in Marxist philosophy, Chinese philosophy, Western philosophy, philosophy of science and technology, logic, ethics, religious studies, and Oriental philosophy and religions.

History

The Department, founded in 1920, has a long and prestigious tradition. Many distinguished Chinese philosophers made their presence felt here, among them are Boming Liu（刘伯明）, Yongtong Tang（汤用彤）, Baihua Zong（宗白华）, Thomé H. Fang（方东美）, Junyi Tang（唐君毅）, Zongsan Mou（牟宗三）, Shiquan Cheng（程石泉）, Qingyuan Ni（倪青原）, Haiguang Yin（殷海光）, Wei Xiong（熊伟）, Chung-Hwan Chen（陈康）, Litian Miao（苗力田）, Shu Pan（潘菽）, Shuping Sun（孙叔平）, Jisong Xia（夏基松）, Bokui Sun（孙伯鍨）, etc. Their expertise in Chinese philosophy, Buddhism, ancient Greek philosophy, continental philosophy, and Marxist philosophy played a key role in establishing the Department’s reputation and influence. Notably, Fuming Hu（胡福明）, the main author of the essay “Practice Is the Sole Criterion of Testing Truth,” is deemed as the theoretical precursor of China’s reform and opening up in the late 1970s.

Programs

The Department offers a B.A. program in philosophy, and M.A. and Ph.D. programs in the following eight subfields: Marxist philosophy, Chinese philosophy, Western philosophy, logic, ethics, philosophy of science & technology, religious studies,and Oriental philosophy and religions.

We are committed to providing both undergraduate and postgraduate programs of academic excellence. Some of our faculty members belong to the “Outstanding Teaching Group in China.” Two-thirds of our undergraduates continue their studies in famous universities at home and abroad. The research conducted by our graduate students prove to be impressive, and our placement record is excellent. Many of our Ph.D. candidates become distinguished academics at top universities.

Visiting scholar/student programs are also available in the Department. Overseas students are welcome to apply to both degree and exchange programs. Some of our courses are taught in English or bilingual.

Research

The research capacity of our department has been widely acclaimed in China. We publish several influential academic journals in our field: Register of Critical Theory of Society, The Journal of Hong De, Studies of Buddhist Culture, Eastern Philosophy and Culture, The Silk Road Cultural Studies, Trends and Reviews in Logic.

The Department is home to some prestigious research centers and institutes, including the Center for Studies of Marxist Social Theory, the Diane and Guilford Glazer Institute of Jewish and Israel Studies, the Center for Studies of Confucianism Daoism Buddhism and Traditional Chinese Culture, Institute of Modern Logic and Application, Institute for Phenomenology, etc.

The Department has an independent research library, holding 300, 000 volumes of books in Chinese and other languages.

We are committed to promoting global academic exchange. We have established a long-term cooperative relationship with more than 10 philosophy departments or research institutes in various countries. Most of our professors and Ph.D. students have spent at least one year as visiting scholars or students in the philosophy departments at accredited universities abroad, and many of our professors were invited to give speeches or teach overseas. On a yearly basis, we invite a number of internationally recognized philosophers or scholars to give lectures or teach short-term courses at NJU.