verificationist

I know nothing about the places you've been admitted to except that NIU is a very good MA programme that can lead you to a top PhD. However, I'd just like to say the following: If I were in your situation I'd find out what happens in the Boston MA, because my worry is that since Boston has a PhD they won't take you seriously as an MA student. If they won't take you seriously then I'd say it's a no-brainer: you only real choice is NIU, since in the end you probably wouldn't even benefit from what is attracting you to Boston.

Hey, it would be totally awesome to get in touch with anyone going to UT Austin. Please PM me if you want to do so!

So no one knows anything. Great!

I think you should have Ave forward it to him, Nikolay. I'm sure he either knows Chalmers or someone else who knows him.

Look at the MA's placement record. If they have at least a 50% placement in top-40 schools I'd say go for it. You already know you're good enough at least to get into a funded PhD!

Work on your writing sample. That's all I can say with the extremely meagre experience I have. It is always going to be worse than you think it really is. So if there's anything wrong with your application it's probably your writing sample. I've seen people with worse GREs and pedigree get into far better places. It's the always the sample.

[Edited due to previous total stupidity on my part.]

Well, that certainly seems like a very opportunistic and money-grabbing move on NYU's part. They should be ashamed of it. If you're willing to pay for a Master's programme you're much better off doing it at a British university, where Master's students are actually taken seriously and where you're actually working towards a degree that can get you into a PhD.

Yes, around the middle in a waiting list of about 30. They said they usually make it to half of the list and that they had only 4 places for 120 applicants.

OK, people, it's decided. After having been rejected by Columbia and having gotten a first-round acceptance into UT-Austin, it is Texas for me next year. Ah, that certainly is a big 'take that' to Northwestern, Maryland and Brown for having spurned my writing sample! Haven't hear from Ohio nor U Conn at all. Presumed rejection from Mass.-Amherst, but I still love them because I sent them a weaker writing sample, since unfortunately my main sample was too long for them. Will decline the following offers: Missouri U of Miami Colorado (waitlist) Indiana (waitlist) My stats were these: GRE: 170 V, 162 Q, 5.5 A BA Philosophy. British degree. Very low 2:1, borderline 2:2 I am doing an MA in the UK, but I didn't send any graduate grades because I didn't have any yet. I think it's a miracle I got a good outcome given how low my BA grades were, but one caveat is that it's from a place with very, very good pedigree. All recommendations are from well-known people. I think I got into UT-Austin because I wrote on a very traditional phil of language topic, and perhaps it resonated with some of the faculty there. That's it, I guess!

Funny thing is: at this point, by pure first-batch offer statistics, Colorado is as competitive as Rutgers. Which means that, ironically, none of the 4 people who were good enough to get in are remotely likely to take the offer. Anyway, I'm getting myself off the waitlist, even though I'm curious as to whether I'd make the cut...

I'm attending UT Austin next year and incredibly happy about it. It was just a joke about how I'd find it so 'horrendous' to be in a place with non-analytic philosophy requirements that it's good I'll be living very far from it. But then I added a remark to acknowledge that it does seem like a pretty good place for someone who likes non-analytic philosophy.

Got the offer letter from UT-Austin. 14,500 a year if you have an MA (which is the case with me). Whoa, you know, even if it's for 6 years that's a pittance (they give you two summers of $5000 and it increases when you're ABD, though). Time to call my parents and remind them how much I love them...

Feminism, Native American philosophy, continental stuff... it's a good thing Oregon is a looooong way from Texas! But yes, I guess that explains why the programme should be attractive to some people. You also have very good placement. I wonder, is it the case that good SPEP programmes usually have better placing than good PGR programmes?

Honest question: why is Oregon so competitive? Are they particularly good at Continental philosophy?