ATS3882 Metaphysics
Faculty of Arts
ATS3882 Metaphysics is a level 3, 6-credit-point, undergraduate unit from the Faculty of Arts, offered in 2026 in Semester 2 at Clayton. It has no prerequisites.
- Credit points
- 6
- Offered in 2026
- Semester 2
- Clayton
- Assessment
- No exam
- 5 tasks
- Workload
- 144 hours
- per semester
This is the 2026 handbook entry. See the 2027 entry.
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Requisites
Before ATS3882
No prerequisites or corequisites besides the enrolment rules below.
After ATS3882
No unit lists ATS3882 as a prerequisite in the 2026 handbook.
Enrolment rules
Overview
The primary focus of metaphysics is fundamental reality. Metaphysicians develop, and debate, competing conceptions of what there fundamentally is, and what it is fundamentally like. Broad categories that can be the focus of metaphysical investigation include: objects, properties, states, functions, events, values, minds, causes, dispositions, space, time, propositions and numbers. Broad topics that can be taken up include: ontological commitment, composition, supervenience, reduction, fundamentality, and social kinds. From semester to semester, the selected menu of categories and topics will change; in every semester, a range of important metaphysical categories and topics will be investigated. Typically, the chosen categories and topics will be investigated through the lens of a particular theme: e.g. social ontology, levels of reality, idealism, Buddhist ontology, metaphysical naturalism, etc.
Offerings in 2026
| Teaching period | Campus | Mode |
|---|---|---|
| Second semester | Clayton | On campus |
Assessment
- In Class ExercisesExercise30%
- Exercise10%
- Presentation10%
- EssayWritten30%
- EssayWritten20%
Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.
Learning outcomes
When you finish this unit, you should be able to:
- 1
apply sophisticated bibliographic skills which allow you to identify additional relevant contributions to philosophical problems in metaphysics;
- 2
accurately summarise and succinctly evaluate articles written for professional philosophy journals in an in-class presentation;
- 3
be able to frame a more specific research question and address that question effectively in a longer essay (within parameters that provide some initial guidance);
- 4
critically engage with particular debates of contemporary metaphysical focus;
- 5
demonstrate and apply a highly developed understanding of the norms of philosophical writing;
- 6
demonstrate and apply a highly developed understanding of the norms of philosophical discussion.
Workload and teaching
- Tutorials24 hours
- Lectures12 hours
- Teaching approachActive learning
Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.
The unit is structured around the central assessment task, which is treated like a mini-thesis. The classes at the beginning set out the range of topics in social ontology which students may address in their work. The rest of the semester is devoted to independent work on the assessment task, with plenty of help available if sought.
Where it fits
ATS3882 is part of 3 areas of study in the 2026 handbook.
Contacts
- Chief Examiners
- Professor Graham Oppy
- Unit Coordinators
- Professor Graham Oppy
Common questions
What are the prerequisites for ATS3882?
ATS3882 has no prerequisites, but enrolment rules apply.
When is ATS3882 offered?
In 2026, ATS3882 runs in Semester 2 at Clayton.
How much work is ATS3882?
The handbook expects about 144 hours of study across the semester. No students have rated its difficulty yet.
Does ATS3882 have an exam?
No. ATS3882 has 5 assessment tasks and no exam.
Which majors and minors include ATS3882?
ATS3882 is part of Philosophy.