Duns Eith

I am sorry to hear. It is quite heartbreaking. I know you'll already be asking yourself over and over what you need to fix and improve, or whether to invest in applying again. Let me say this: whatever your choice for next year, remember your worth is not bound up in decision letters. You're more than your grades, recommendations, written samples, or standardized test scores. Your anxiety over the process is normal and legitimate. Your lack of offer does not mean you are incompetent. You can still love philosophy as a professional or as an amateur/well-invested hobbist, even if someone else did not choose to invest in you this time. Don't settle for a life that you know you cannot live with. You can face another round if you really want to; shut-outs are not uncommon.

Congratulations!!!!!!!

Congratulations! I'm super jeals

I dunno, I spend a lot of time with coworkers in the department, and that irrespective of whether I find them kindred spirits or comfortable to be with.

Congratulations!! That's great news!

Accept A if B doesn't reply in time, and don't even feel bad about it. If B reaches out to you, you should be given time to make a decision (since this is not an initial acceptance) and tell them that you want to accept but that you need to request School A to release you from your obligation. Admissions committees have heard of this situation before. They won't be shocked.

Similarly, feel free to message me with any questions about Western Michigan University

I guess this is helpful, but it seems that the anecdotes and interpretations might allow for low inter-rater reliability. Consequently, I don't see a reason to create some patchwork of a handful of some grad student opinions.

Do you have an ax to grind? I am wondering what justified this unsolicited review?

Talking with many people in different app processes, I have found that often people don't look in depth beyond faculty specialties (and special faculty), PGR ranking, and the fact that there is funding people rank schools loosely; rarely do they create an ordinal list where there are few or no ties -- doing so requires further investigation of every program, like comparing faculty for your intended diss topic, precise funding package as it relates to estimated cost of living, actual placement records, etc. There is some economy to not researching each place well, since you'll be turned down by many schools you would be investigating. You need a low resolution until a viable option is actually offered. It requires a higher resolution to make an ordinal list where you can actually say "I have my 4th school, I'll turn down 6, 7, 8, 9, 10..."

I suggested in my link some ways to mitigate how terrible it can be. Others include: Investigating schools well enough that you have a personal ranking system before you hear back from any school. As in, if you got offers from your 7th and 8th personally ranked school, you could in principle turn down the 8th. You might need to pause to make a decision if there's information you couldn't have had access to before (such as a scholarship), but you won't need to pause for, say, comparing your 4th to your 8th. The idea is that if you get your 4th, you can tell your 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 ... etc. all the way down that you'd like to withdraw. You don't need to say yes to your 4th yet, but there is little sense waiting to tell all of the lesser ones you are content at a better offer elsewhere. Encourage others to do likewise. Don't hold onto offers because of FOMO. You can't swap but there might be enough shifting that your #8 school you turn down is someone's preferred school, and that it sets the chain reaction to opening up your #4 school. Recognize when you're getting FOMO hard, and talk it out with someone who is more decisive than you. Go with their decision. Or take their decision seriously. Because, after all, you will likely tell them what you really want to hear anyway.

Yup, this is the cascade effect that occurs every year. There is no way around it. We can only mitigate how terrible it can be: Looking back at the post, it apparently got some haters? Lol. Stating facts in order to help people apparently makes some people sad. (No one gave any pushback, so I don't take the reactions seriously)

You are not too old of a candidate. As the poster above me said, grad schools are often quite diverse in age range (like 22 thru 42, though most are late 20's, early 30's). You can be taken seriously if you put out good work. I would encourage reconsidering grad school for other reasons, though. Grad school in humanities is for most people a professional dead end.* Not because they aren't good, but because the market is so harsh and the process of completing so grueling. I am in for the long haul, but I reassess my goals and justifications for completing my program every week or two. It isn't a terribly taxing reconsideration, but I'm acutely aware of the low probability of doing what I want to do. My situation is not unique, not even remotely. My comments here are not directed toward you only. Grad school in humanities is a dead end for someone who is 22 years old, has good grades, can do good work, and can reasonably get into a good school. The fact is that the academic system has serious problems and PhD students (and those with PhD's in-hand!) suffer long and hard before they give up. Over and over and over again. My comment is directed toward you in that if you can continue in IT and do philosophically interesting things (reading current journal articles; discussing with friends or acquaintances at deep level, say at a local coffee shop; engaging with people online; etc.) as a well-invested hobby, it might be in your best interest to take that course. I know no one wants to hear this, and some people reading will buck against this until they face it themselves, but I think it is good for you to hear it. I hope this is helpful. * do the stats. Almost half of all PhD students don't complete their degree. The average successful placement into gainful employment is not at half across PhD granting institutions. Even among the top programs, it is not above 80%. Thus, for most people, literally most people, who begin grad school will eventually find it to be a professional dead end.

This. It is seriously quite unnecessary and unfortunate to take on debt for an MA in philosophy. Don't do it. Tufts is great, but taking on a pile of debt will cause your bones to ache for years. It isn't worth it when the market gives you no expectation of solvency.

Congrats!

If you find some recently articles you're interested in, you might find that they are behind a paywall to read past their first page or abstract. If you are lacking library-access to journals and you have an account on Facebook, look for the Phil Underclass group on FB. You can post PhilPapers links to request fulltexts of papers you are trying to hunt down. Most people there are really happy to help.

I realize there's a variety of types of jobs that require teaching to different extents, lecturer/adjunct professor, full-time instructor, visiting assistant professor (VAP), and then the glorious shining jobs such as tenure-track assistant professor. Some schools are looking for tenure teachers (no research expected or necessary for advancement). I'm really fine with all of these options in the long-term, but obviously I give preference to tenure-track. I'm currently in a PhD. I have a lot of teaching experience for a grad student who is 2 years into his PhD (12 classes as instructor of record, across 6 different phil courses), not including my experience as a grader/teaching assistant. I am in the PhD in large part to get myself in a position to teach. I am trying to gear myself in every way for that goal, more than research. I've been emailing department chairs of local schools about teaching needs they might have. I have had friends who work at nearby universities to drop their name in my inquiry. I've gotten some professional references from my current profs who can speak to my teaching experience. I give invited presentations/talks often. I keep my CV up to the minute. Any other suggestions how I should be going about this? What do you think of the massive online platforms for teaching? I have a generally negative opinion of the industry and the direction it's taking. I won't name any "universities", but some of them seem if not cheesy then predatory. Could someone change my mind? Maybe I've generalized hastily. For those who have taken certification programs for teaching, did you find it helpful? If you got a job in philosophy, do you think it gave your application any preference over your competitors?

Congrats!

Are you able to compare apples to apples on this point? Like, do both programs post not just a list of schools, but rather stats? like how many who finished the MA applied for PhDs in philosophy, and of those who applied were given offers, and of those who were given offers how many of them were highly ranked. For example, I think it can be quite telling if about half of the MA students don't apply to PhDs, but almost all who do apply get placed into a well-ranked funded PhD. Or, for another example, if almost all apply to PhD programs, but only a simple majority get placed into a wide range of ranked PhDs.

Great! They look like a great program, for their low PGR rating. Do you have a preference for Purdue vs Fordham, in case both make offers? (I have a high view of Purdue, and my friend is at Fordham and he is glad to be there)

Welcome to TGC! Metaphysically? Yes. Physically? Sure. Likely? Extremely not. Sorry to be a Debbie Downer, but if you haven't heard anything from them, I highly doubt that you'll be made an offer now. They are one of the most sought after programs in the world. When I was rejected two years ago, it was on March 9th (a Thursday). It is only March 11th. Give them time and try to manage your expectations. Again, sorry to be such a downer, I'm just being realistic.

Sorry to hear, yall!

This is amazing! I had no idea! Thanks for posting this here

Ouch man. That sucks really bad. I am sorry to hear

You're not alone. This is normal to feel terrible and disoriented now. It is OK to get help. In fact I encourage you to get very well socially connected, either with your friends or your family or faith community or sign up for short term therapy. (Counseling services on your campus might be available for free)