père_fume

I got my undergraduate dergree in the united states; for this, i had to get an F1 visa. This did not require me to give up the tourist visa that I already held. During my time in college I held both visas, student and tourist, without problems. I do not know if the same holds for other types of visas, but i would not be surprised.

Thank you both for the comments! I am going into interdisciplinary MAs because I want to strengthen my curriculum and preparation for research. That said, my interests are pretty well defined: Lacanian psychoanalysis, political philosophy (in the vein of Arendt, Foucault, Agamben), and the transcendental/continental tradition of speculative philosophy (i mean Kant, Hegel, Heidegger...). What I want out of an MA is a very solid base of knowledge in these areas and (the opportunity to write) an excelent writting sample--goals in and of themselves, but, of course, goals in view of getting into the best possible doctoral programs. The reason I applied to Liberal Studies at NSSR instead of Philosophy/Psychoanalysis (which seems like a perfect fit), is that a professor warned me against it: she said that PhD programs in philosophy were reluctant to take students who had already been "steeped" in the methodologies and perspectives of philosophy departments at other schools. Was this bad advice? Is it really difficult to enter PhD programs at NSSR having completed the MA in Liberal Studies?

Excluding economic considerations (ie which costs more, which offers better funding), which program do you think is better for someone looking for the best academic preparation for doctoral research? In other words: which is the stronger program, academically speaking?

The news has been good for me so far. UChicago's *MAPH* and Columbia's *MA in Modern Art: Critical and Curatorial Studies (Moda)* have both offered me admission--though without funding (which is ok, for money is not a serious problem). Still waiting on Liberal Studies MA at NSSR (new school) and Media, Culture and Communication at NYU. Columbia is giving me a very short amount of time to decide; they require a response by March 22nd. The problem is that Chicago's "campus days" for admitted maph students take place april 11-12th; i would have liked to be able to visit UChicago before making a decison, but... My interests (philosophy, history, psychoanalysis) definitely make me lean toward MAPH and i have heard much more about this program. I know very little about MODA, as it is totally absent from this blog. I have a taste for the study of modern art history and theory, so i do not want to rule it out...also the tag: "columbia university" is hard to ignore. I would appreciate thoughts concerning both programs: which has a higher level, where are MA students given better attention, etc... thanks all.

I beleive that GRE scores are correlative to socio-economic background. GREs represent how the american education system works: instead of being a social equalizer, they accentuate inequality. Intelligence is equally distributed, what is not, however, is access to preparation courses and materials.

I have heard the term "cash cow" before, believe me, especially concerning MA programs...why do you think i posted that comment in parentheses in the title? I have been exploring this blog, and it seems like a common notion that MAs are a rip-off. I am lucky that if I do an MA, i would not end up with dept. And i really want to study in an elite institution for my PhD, in order to do this, i think i need a stronger curriculum and writing sample, and maybe reading knowedge of german? My interests are still unclear, but they definitely are related to continental philosophy, critical theory, art, and Lacanian psychoanalysis. Im am looking at PhD programs such as the Comitee on Social Thought at Chicago, or something of the sort. I would not get in there if applied now! Useful comments, really. Thanks. More are welcome and appreciated!

Well, i will not be in debt...i can pay for a year or two of MA. I intend to do a PHD afterwards, but i want to boost my curriculum and clarify my interests some more. I do not think that any respectable PHD program would take me as I stand at the moment. Whay do you assume that i will not get a good position, even if i complete the MA and then a PHD? thanks for your thoughts. m

Trilingual (French, Spanish and English, all 100%) Double major. Overall GPA 3.59. Award in political theory. Mediocre GREs: V/620, Q/630, still no word on the Analytical writing section... I am applying to the following MA programs: MAPH at U CHICAGO Liberal Studies at NSSR (New School) Modern Art: Critical and Curatorial Studies at COLUMBIA Media, Culture and Communication at NYU I appreciate any comments regarding my prospects for addmissions, and regarding the specific programs, opinions, etc... Thank you!