[2021 Philosophy M.A.]

This is a perfectly normal part of the experience. The application process is not designed to promote applicant mental health nor to provide clear, actionable feedback on your application.

At best, there’s a general sense of what is valued for programs, but the whole variety of factors at play can make it extremely difficult to determine why a decision is made.
 

This is especially true because there are often so many more applicants who are perfectly qualified than there are slots available.

You could have a great application, but they may already have 6 students studying that topic, so they have to pass in favor of someone else whose focus is less represented (this example is less true for MAs, but still holds).
Unfortunately, this means you have to rely on analysis that doesn’t come directly from the programs themselves. Speak with your letter writers, especially anyone who has served on a graduate acceptance committee (which can be hard when you attended an undergrad where there isn’t a graduate program).

The two best things you can do for your application are:

Figure out what you can do to improve your application based on general standards (do you need to edit your writing samples? Do you need to get a different letter of rec? Do you need to retake the GREs?)

Make sure that the programs you are applying to are the best ‘fit’ for you, where you have the greatest chance of being picked from a pool of equally qualified applications, based on your research interests and the department specialities. (Again, this is less true for MA programs than PhDs, but it is still somewhat true.)

And yeah, it sucks. I’ve been shut out before, left alone with basically no understanding of why I wasn’t successful in my application, which was a terrible feeling. You are definitely not alone in this.

[2021 Application Discussion Thread]

On 12/12/2020 at 7:02 AM, PhilCoffee said:

A (often discussed, I suppose) question about statement of purpose: if one does not go very specific about faculty members' research, is it still a good thing to mention the general strengths of a program? Or, will that look to the committee like doing only very superficial research about the program?

The advise I was given from two separate grad acceptance committee directors is to NOT mention specific faculty members. Focus instead on the general strengths of the program.

They gave several reasons:

1. If a particular faculty member currently has enough students, is secretly retiring, or even just not on the committee, you can hurt your chances.

2. If, say, you mention Kant but only mention 1 of the 2 Kantians on the faculty, you might slight the other professor. The annoying reality is that this is just a part of the process. This was emphasized to me as the most important of the reasons.

3. Unless you are actually familiar with said professor (from recent conferences, actually being familiar with their work, or other professional contexts), you might misjudge or mischaracterize them. This is apparently quite common.

[General Graduate Writing Advice?]

5 hours ago, BabyFarmer said:

In terms of editing papers down, I find I can get distracted when words start moving around on the page so I set up an "operating table" which is a blank doc where I copy-paste paragraphs or sentences I'm trying to rework so I can focus on that section alone. I find it helps with hacking away at word counts and precise writing.

This. Definitely agree.

I usually have three documents. A master note document with citations, as well as quotes or even full pages from key texts. This will often include an outline. I usually make a clone of this document, and every time i use a passage or quote, i delete it from the clone so that i can keep track of what I haven’t added into the paper.

An ‘operating table’ type document, where i will, say, place a key quote i want to analyze or an argument i need to summarize or refute, and do the actual writing in that document, sometimes doing several variations on the same bit to see what is successful. I let all of the detritus collect below a page break, just in case.

A proper ‘essay’ document, usually written in 6-8 point font, single spaced, two pages visible, so that i can get a birds-eye view of the paper, focusing on the paper structure.

As the paper comes into focus, these will slowly consolidate into a single document, at which point I shift to editing.

 

[Program's Writing Sample Page Length]

I guess the thing I’d offer is that if one person on a committee is a stickler for page-length (and who hasn’t run into a professor like that?) that person is gonna throw out your application.

So while there might be many successful applicants who get in because they never got those people, do you really want to risk it? Do you want to be one of the 1/5/10% of applicants this happens to?

Obviously pinning down a number on this percentage is (basically) impossible, but the risk just isn’t worth it. And I get it, cutting sucks, its so hard, but its really an essential skill.

[Making a resource for people interested in going to graduate school. Would Appreciate some help!]

One resource worth mentioning here, I think, is the Unlikely Academics podcast. The primary audience of the podcast is people who are under-represented, from non-research intensive schools, or are first generation post-grad students. The focus skews a bit more to advocating for those under-represented from rural areas, it does try to provide information to a broader audience. It should also be paired with podcasts like Blk + In Grad School which covers some other elements. They try to address issues from how to approach applications, to the unspoken cultural norms of grad school, and even how to talk to friends who didn’t get in during a round of applications.

[Philosophy M.A. and then Law School?]

I don’t know if any of the schools are up your alley philosophically, but some schools have joint Phil. MA/Law degree programs (including Georgetown, Stanford, UCLA, Boston College, Duke, and Duquesne and i’m sure plenty more).

[Going from an analytic dep to a continental dep]

My undergrad degree was in analytic philosophy, my MA was in a music department (at an analytic-ish school), and I got an MA in a very heavy continental program and now I’m at a heavy duty continental PhD. I’d certainly agree with @HomoLudens: they care more about expressed interest, a general background in philosophy writ large, and potential than they do about expertise.

[Second Masters if at Non-Prestigious MA?]

However, it is worth noting that a second MA in a related field does offer benefits. In my own cohort, 2/4 have two MAs. One is philosophy + one is political theory, for myself I have an MA in Philosophy and one from a music department. Several people in my 2nd MA (Philosophy) came into philosophy with MAs in Psychology or equivalent degrees from Divinity schools (M.Div, I think is what its called?). However, in all those cases it has been degrees that contribute to their primary interests (Psychoanalysis, Religious Phenomenology, Political Philosophy, etc.)
the returns on the same degree, however, are quite limited except, as mentioned above, if you are going to the States from not a well-known (by American faculty) program, trying to get into the US system.

[TA duties in Fall]

At Duquesne the TAs largely sit in on the virtual classes, hold office hours via zoom (either by appointment or by a set time), occasionally cover a class, and do the grading. Fortunately it’s been relatively straightforward.

[Tea on Duquesne]

On 3/13/2020 at 11:30 AM, Husserl said:

What is the stipend like? Enough to live on? How are the faculty? Anyone to avoid? Did you get off the waitlist or immediate acceptance? How is the vibe?

The stipend is fine, largely because Pittsburgh is cheap enough. Its neither a pro nor a con.

Faculty are all pretty great, but with one or two worth avoiding. Selcer in particular is spectacular. Evans is retiring, but will continue to teach one grad class/yr, and can still be on committees. We get to know the profs pretty well.

I got in off the top of the waitlist.

It feels like an academic island in a Catholic sea. The students are great and there’s a definitely a feeling of community, but the school at large runs into the usual problems Academia and Catholicism run into.

If you want more specifics, DM me.

[Tea on Duquesne]

10 hours ago, Husserl said:

Hey everyone, 

So who has tea on Duquesne? Share need-to-know stuff about the program if you are there already. If you are accepted, got any tea on what the acceptance package is like? Are you leaning toward accepting or denying? If you are on a wait-list, you know your ranking? Have you visited? Got any tea? 

I am on the wait-list. I know that it is ranked, but I do not know my ranking. Was planning to visit, but it seems that it is impossible to do that now, considering that they are closed due to covid-19. What about you all? 

I’d be happy to talk with anyone about it. (Current Duq PhD)

[Prospective visit cancellations]

Given the cancellations, I just want to put it out there that I’m more than happy to talk to anyone who wants to learn more about Duquesne and Boston College.

[2020 Waitlist Thread]

9 hours ago, strongkleeneevalscheme said:

Waitlisted at Pitt. Received an oddly personal email asking for my current level of interest in the program and floating the possibility that I attend the admitted student visitation at the end of the month. I say 'odd' only because I had assumed that a waitlist email would be more clinical, rather than warm and inviting. Perhaps this is normal, but it would take more willpower than I have to refrain from interpreting this as a sign that I am particularly high on that list; I will therefore ignore any comments on here to the contrary ?.

 

For whatever it’s worth, I had a similar experience of a very personal, warm waitlist email from Duquesne, because I was #1 on the waitlist (and because faculty at most Pittsburgh schools are lovely people).

[2020 Acceptance Thread]

14 hours ago, UndergradDad said:

SmugSnugInaRug, any insider info on whether all acceptance offers have been made already for the Phd program?

As of right now, no idea, but I’ll keep an ear out.

[2020 Acceptance Thread]

On 2/14/2020 at 3:18 PM, HootyHoo said:

I'm the one who posted about the call from Duquesne! Prof. Rodemeyer left a message about scheduling a longer discussion about questions regarding the program etc., so the calls might be taking a while if people are picking up and having those discussions right at that moment.

Congratulations! As a current PhD at Duquesne, I’d be happy to answer any questions you might have.

[2020 Interview Thread]

On 2/4/2020 at 1:55 PM, platonetsocrate said:

It was indeed quite like you suggest here - focus on fit, etc. Thanks!

Yes I was. Thanks!

Glad it helped!

[2020 Interview Thread]

On 1/31/2020 at 10:50 PM, platonetsocrate said:

Received an interview invitation from DePaul today. Interviews to take place over the first part of the week (Mon/Tues/Wed), then decisions on the 7th.

Anyone have any idea what to expect? How to prepare?

As far as I understand, Continental interviews are usually about fit with the program more than anything. Its usually some time devoted to your interests, your writing sample, and why you think it would be a good match. And my discussions with a few of the DePaul PhDs generally seem to confirm this as being true there as well.

So prep is largely having some questions prepared for them about how DePaul Specifically could help YOU, as well as taking some time to review the faculty/their research interests/the interests of the other grad students, etc.

[Philosophy Graduate Entrants 2020]

7 hours ago, TheCarbWhisperer said:

Maybe this is a silly question, but do most PhD phil programs have interviews? I keep looking at the results page and r/gradadmissions and there are just a lotta people talking about interviews. 

Some of the Continental programs have interviews, though not all. Villanova certainly does, I think DePaul and Penn State do too. Check the master list for confirmation.

[Pivoting from Philosophy of Religion MA into general Philosophy PhD?]

Schools like Villanova, Boston College and Fordham would certainly be welcoming to this kind of background. Most of the Catholic Continental schools usually have space for students with your background and professors who would definitely be interested in math + religion (especially if your okay with it being stuff in the history of mathematics).

[Ancient Philosopher VS Modern Philosophy]

6 hours ago, MarcHarold said:

Hello all! 

I am going to major in philosophy [undergraduate], and I am hesitating between specializing in ancient philosophy or modern philosophy. How should I go about this choice?

I know that I find ancient thoughts to be interesting, but is this sufficient to choose ancient philosophy as specialization? Does ancient philosophy require particular skills? Or maybe I should go with  modern philosophy instead? 

Thank you for your help.

Hi @MarcHarold, what exactly do you mean by specializing in ancient/modern? Is there a particular distinction at your undergrad that you are referring to (like, are they two different majors?) or are you thinking more generally about the kinds of classes you want to take? Fortunately, if you are thinking generally, in most philosophy undergrads you don’t really ‘specialize,’ you just take classes your interested in (and in some cases, take a language that will help you read those particular texts you are interested enough in that you want to read them in the original language).

I tend to recommend to my students who want to go to grad school in philosophy think of it like this: 

1. Get a good, well rounded education in philosophy. Take courses from every topic plus the ones that interest you the most. ‘Specializing’ in a field in undergrad doesn’t really exist except if the school has distinct majors, but I suspect even then they wouldn’t look too different to grad committees. And realistically your interests are going to change. I started off in undergrad doing analytic philosophies of language and now my focus is largely on continental readings of Plato.

2. Learn a language you want to read that is related to philosophy you actually want to read (Ancient Greek, Latin, French, German being the big four). If you fall in love with Greek/Latin, consider double majoring in classics.

3. Take at least two or three classes in a particular topic you are really interested in, to give you a few chances to produce a solid writing sample on a subject you’ve looked at repeatedly.

 

[Statement of Purpose Question]

On 7/20/2019 at 4:46 PM, UndergradDad said:

Thanks, can you clarify though what you mean by the sense of cohesion between the AOI and personal background? By personal background are you referring to prior courses taken?

Sure.

By sense of cohesion, I mean something like this: Does your AOI relate to courses you took in undergrad or an MA program? Can you give examples of this area consistently across two programs, or even from several years within undergrad? @Glasperlenspieler definitely put it in the right tone: show that your interests are stable, but without being too hyper-specific. (A balance you won’t strike on your first draft, it requires getting someone else to review your draft to tell you where you are in that balance.)

You are not building a grand narrative that connects everything together, just a sense of definition or cohesion. Thing of it more like smoothing our rough edges than giving fine details. For example, if you have an MA is psychology, but are now trying to do a PhD in philosophy, you need to be able to explain why this MA would be an asset and you understand how they relate, and not that you are just jumping from one field to another. An area of interest at the intersection of the two fields would help immensely in a case like that.

Mentioning specific courses you took that give a sense that you are prepared for your areas of interest is a great tactic. If you wrote papers on that topic specifically, great, mention it once or twice. Interested in Nietzsche and Kierkegaard? It would be good for them to know: you took a course on Nietzsche, and a course on German Idealism, you wrote a phil. of religion paper on Kierkegaard, and that you’ve taken German for two years (or whatever! Fill in your background). Don’t tell them that you started reading Nietzsche when you were 16. Don’t give reasons why one class led you to the next, the listing of them will suffice. This isn’t about how you ‘think deep’ or some story about how nietzsche moved you, its about making clear that you have real, material proof that you have done work that would prepare you for the next degree.

 

 

 

[Statement of Purpose Question]

I found that the more important thing is a coherent narrative about yourself, to emphasize @maxhgns its not the number but rather that you convey a sense of cohesion between the AOI you mention and your personal background.

They aren’t looking for sincerity or authenticity, but rather more that you have a sense of what you are interested in, and that the level of focus you have is appropriate to where you are in the process (if you have a BA going for an MA it should be more open, going for a PhD should be more refined, and with an MA into PhD it should show even more specificity and a clear narrative connecting your BA and MA experience into those exact AOI). 

[Can I get a second MA in philosophy?]

So, one of the big issues with the GRE is that the analytic writing section is notoriously unreliable. This may (or may not) be true, but that is a commonly held perception. At best, higher writing scores usually correlate to higher verbal scores. As a result, the actual treatment of the AW is sidelined in favor of the more 'reliable' (at least apparently) verbal score. On average, graduate applicants to any program try to score a 4 or higher on the AW. A high verbal plus a 3 wouldn't necessarily hurt you, except in the more competitive programs.

With respect to the verbal score, I will repeat advice I gave elsewhere in the forum: I have been explicitly told by members of committees that verbal scores are used in the sorting process and prospective students with particularly high scores have an advantage. Often applicants in the 98th percentile (varies by year, usually 167+) and above are given preferential treatment in the process (this varies from department to department, but is far more prevalent than reading this forum might suggest). This doesn't guarantee acceptance, but is quite helpful.

While the writing sample is the most important, if you can afford it, a higher GRE score is a good thing and really does help. And, fortunately, repeated attempts at the GRE do usually lead to better results (fewer careless errors, a better understanding of the pacing of the test, etc.)

[2 Questions concerning the GRE]

I’m gonna just try to run a bit against the grain, if only because you mentioned BC and Continental programs.

The short version is this: I know for a fact that some members of continental program acceptance committees DO use the verbal GRE score in deciding whether your application goes to a single professor to read, or to every professor.

A high score doesn’t guarantee entry, but it can drastically increase your chances when you are being reviewed by several professors rather than one.

I have been specifically told by faculty who work in these committees that top verbal scores are absolutely important. Regardless of how indicative they actually are. The recommendation I received was to try to get a 167 or higher (depending on the year).

 

[Help Choosing a School]

On 4/15/2019 at 12:53 AM, Rose-Colored Beetle said:

The shorter answer is that Searle uses the word "intentionality."

As in ‘Seale intended to be a sexual predator’.