The Master Course in Philosophy was created on June 20, 1974, concentrated in the field of Contemporary Philosophy, upon the coordination of Prof. Father Henrique Cláudio de Lima Vaz (died in 2002).

The Doctorate course was created on June 30, 1992 and started operating in 1993. The first reformulation of the Program's structure took place that year, as a result of the creation of the doctoral project: the area of concentration became Philosophy, organized in four lines of research (Aesthetics and Philosophy of Art; Social and Political Philosophy; Logic and Philosophy of Science; History of Philosophy). After undergoing other reformulations over the years, the lines of research underwent a new modification, which resulted in the current framework in the Program: Aesthetics and Philosophy of Art; Ethics and Political Philosophy; Ancient and Medieval Philosophy; Modern and Contemporary Philosophy; Logic, Science, Mind and Language.

It is part of the history of the Postgraduate Program in Philosophy at Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG) the presence of professors trained in the three most important philosophical traditions on the international stage, namely France, Germany and Anglo-Saxon countries. This diversity, in addition to allowing regular exchange with professors and important centers abroad, provides enrichment in the training of students. Yet, the Program's faculty is composed of professors from different states of Brazil, thus ensuring greater diversity.

The capacity for training human resources is attested by the expressive number of masters and doctors, with the first dissertation defended in 1975 and the first thesis in 1997. The number of dissertations defended from 1989 to 2020 was 461 dissertations, and the number of defended theses from 1997 to 2020 was 178 theses.

The quality of the dissertations and theses defended in the Program is recognized in the evaluation reports. The Program's doctoral theses have already been awarded by Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais - UFMG, by Associação Nacional de Pós-graduação em Filosofia - ANPOF, and also by Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES. In addition, a significant part of its postgraduate students are professors and teachers at other institutions, in different states of Brazil and abroad, what indicates the Program's capacity of constitution of other academic centers of Philosophy in different places.

Scientific contributions are attested by the expressive number of national and international publications (articles, books, book chapters), as well as by the organization and participation in important scientific events (colloquia, congresses, seminars) in the Department of Philosophy at UFMG, and also at other universities in the country and abroad. Professors of the Program have already received awards inside and outside the country. The management of Kriterion Magazine, linked to the Philosophy Department at UFMG, is one of the important activities of the Program. Founded in 1947, Kriterion is the oldest philosophy magazine in Brazil.

Due to its excellent evaluation, the Program has received financial support from Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES (PROEX), from Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais - FAPEMIG (PACSS), and from Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico - CNPq, important funding agencies.