Philosophy was among the courses this semester that experienced low enrollment.

“One of the goals in our department is to raise awareness about the minor which adds an interesting twist,” said Sabine Roehr, an assistant professor of philosophy, “We want to engage with all kinds of students.”

This semester one upper-level class, Western Religions, was cancelled and two others were in danger of not reaching the minimum amount of allotted students.

Philosophy offers introductory classes like Critical Thinking, Person and Problems, as well as the more advanced Existentialism and Phenomenology. NJCU’s policy is that a class must have at least of 12 students before the closing enrollment date; otherwise the class will be cancelled.

Annamarie Scrazati, secretary of philosophy and political science departments, said, “Students want [classes], you might have six students who want a class but because nobody else registers it gets cancelled.”

To complete a Bachelor’s degree at NJCU, students must fulfill all area requirements including Humanities – Area D – therefore most are faced with taking a philosophy class at one point.

Carolyn Gregoire from The Huffington Post recently highlighted the importance and applicability of philosophy in different fields writing, “Philosophy has proved itself to be not only relevant but often the cornerstone of great innovation…some of the most successful tech entrepreneurs and innovators come from a philosophy background.”

In fact Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn and executive chairman, says studying philosophy was the secret of his success as a digital entrepreneur.

However unlike Hoffman, current NJCU students don’t seem to prioritize philosophy especially when registering for classes.