thelonious23

Hello all, Regarding the issue of gender in philosophy programs, it seems that the best you can do is to glean what information you can from the department's website regarding professor and student ratios, committees on gender equality, invited speakers, the kinds of classes that are taught, etc. If you have access to well-connected female professors, they can be an invaluable source of advice. Most important of course is to talk to female grad students in the program. My experience is that they are happy to be candid with you. None of this will give you a perfectly clear picture, but you can triangulate from this information to make as informed as decision as possible. That said, I did exactly this process before I came to Northwestern. Gender friendliness is of high importance to me, having come from a fairly problematic undergraduate program that didn't always treat its female students well. Northwestern's department is extremely gender friendly in my own experience, so you can imagine my surprise and anger when this scandal broke a couple of days ago. As grad students, we are always working with limited information; the machinations of the faculty and the administration are fairly opaque. The one time you will be in a position of power is before you accept an offer: my advice is to ask as many questions as you can at that time. Ask the program directly what steps they take to ensure that the department is hospitable to women and other under-represented minorities. Ask them directly how many and which of your graduate level classes will transfer. Make sure they have a clear record of their job placements posted and if they don't, ask them what their placement rate is. Especially if you have two competing offers, ask them to give you more money. None of this can hurt you, and after you accept an offer, your power is gone.

I think the above poster is right--it's better to wrestle carefully with a specific problem than give an overview. That said, you want to show that you are comfortable with philosophical language and capable of making a contribution to a debate. My best advice, though, is to make your paper as interesting as possible in the first two pages. Don't let the really good stuff come too late because it might not even get read.

The anxiety is killer, I know. Do the applications as soon as possible and then try to forget them. Do something nice for yourself over Christmas. Your final semester grades shouldn't matter. Submit what you have. Schools that accept you will generally ask for a new transcript anyway.

Apply to a range of programs. Apply to some MAs as well. Polish your writing sample and statement of purpose to a high shine. But keep in mind that top 20 placements are very, very competitive, even if you have a near-perfect application. That's why I recommend a buck-shot approach--don't price yourself out of the market.

What's really going to matter is your writing. You'll need enough of an understanding of basic concepts to come up with a good writing sample, but if you can do that, you should be able to make the switch. Letter writers who are sensitive to your new interests would also be extremely helpful. And like the above poster, I would recommend an MA. It's a good way to get some real philosophic work under your belt before committing to PhD applications, and it will likely help you access a broader range of schools. Good MA programs are focused on getting PhD placements for their graduates, and they know what they are doing. I've certainly known students, both in my MA and now in my doctoral program, who have little or no background in philosophy.

What you're interested in will also make a difference. I think strongly analytic programs put more emphasis on the quantitative score, but more pluralistic programs (and certainly the continental oriented) are more interested, generally, in other parts of your application.

You have as good a chance as anyone, but keep in mind that those programs are extremely competitive, and that they don't just look for the strength of the application but for good fit with the department. Choose carefully, and by all means, apply to some top 20 schools, but also apply to a range of schools of varying rank. People do get shut out because they aim too high and have no backup plan. And if you have the time, consider an MA. A strong MA can send a student with no pedigree to a high ranked school. I came from Tufts, and they do have pretty amazing placement. There are other strong programs as well.

If they let you submit four and you have four strong letters, do it. I submitted four when I applied to MAs and it worked out fine. Some will only let you do three, so figure out in advance who you think is least helpful to you.

Also keep in mind that the school you're coming from makes a difference. If you're at a high-end school with a strong reputation, its understood that grades might be a bit lower and still on par with standard school grades. It's annoying but true. Also, I wouldn't mention it in the letters unless there is some important mitigating reason you can give. Let your letter writers do that, since they are the source of the grades and have intimate knowledge of how the system works.

One year is hard, but people do it. I'd think two years would be more useful, since it takes time to develop relationships with the people who will be writing letters for you.

Going through an MA (Tufts) allowed me to get into a terrific school that I would have had a very hard time getting into from my little state school. My fellow students also had excellent placement at some of best schools in the country. If you don't have a pedigree, apply to a range of PhD programs and MAs. It can be a very good and helpful experience.

I just finished an MA in philosophy at Tufts; there were two students in the program from Argentina, terrific students who did really well. Even if you are only specifically interested in aesthetics, it might be worth considering an MA, since it allows you more access to high level schools. Either way, you might consider continental programs over analytic ones. They do tend to emphasize history, but any program is going to want you to have a breadth of knowledge along with your specialty, and continental or pluralistic programs will allow you to focus on issues in art, film, phenomenology, etc.

Tufts is very competitive, but I can say that they offer decent funding (sometimes very good funding) and are interested in helping students that wouldn't otherwise get a shot at top schools. The writing sample is the single most important piece of the application. If you don't have a pedigree undergrad and your stats are pretty good, it's worth applying to Tufts.

A compelling writing sample can make a world of difference. That plus letters and decent GRE scores can help off-set a lower GPA.

Depends on your interests too. If you're doing something logic related, a high math score would be really helpful. Otherwise I think the verbal is much more highly emphasized.

I was admitted to that program last year but without funding. Went to a well-funded MA in philosophy instead. I suppose this isn't really helpful, but I did get the sense that funding was a bit of an issue for them.

The University of North Texas has a terrific, well-thought of environmental ethics program. They do policy as well as traditional philosophy. You might take a look at their website; a number of top scholars teach there.

Thanks! To answer your question, I was a double major as an undergraduate--philosophy and English with a creative writing emphasis. Our school has a graduate creative writing program (I'm a poet), so I worked on my MFA while minoring in philosophy and TAing in the philosophy department (I'm a poet who would rather teach philosophy). So I guess my interests in philosophy and poetry have always overlapped--I wrote my master's comps on Heidegger and Sappho. The writing sample was taken from two philosophy classes, the previously mentioned Epistemology, and Philosophy of Sex and Love, the final paper of was on Socrates, desire, and universal love. The argument was more "open" than I would have been comfortable with on its own. So, polished up a little, this accounted for about fourteen pages of the sample. But I should note that the smaller analytic paper was what one school commented on specifically... and if I had really wanted to be in an analyic program, probably the "loose" paper shouldn't have been included at all. I think I've learned some things from this process. I do think the "voice" of the application is important. I think my lowish (1210) GRE probably precluded me from some more high-end programs (Rice, WashU, Emory), and if I were to do this again, I would want to retake it (and study a bit more this time). I think a student's "potential" is a big part of MA applications, but for PhD's look for more ability to commit...and yes, are pretty damn competative. At any rate, just some thoughts and impressions! Luck to all....

The process is so opaque, but it seems to me that if a school has rejected someone, the only thing that is likely to change that decision in the future would be if the application is improved. For one reason or another, perhaps you're just not a good fit there. Why not cast the net a little wider, try some different schools?

Hi! Just to add a voice to the crowd...I've faired pretty well so far, at least better than I would have thought, given the stiff competition this year. Accepted to Loyola, Purdue's Philosophy and Lit, Tufts, Colorado State, and Arizona State. A couple are still out, but I'm pretty well sure I'll be at Tufts in the fall. Only they and CSU have offered funding so far (and the funding package is in fact better as CSU, but still...). Loyola and Arizona have said nothing about funding at all, and Purdue has said funding is unlikely. Rejections: Texas A&M; Emory; University of Oregon; University of Colorado; WashU. I'm a graduate of a small, fairly unknown philosophy department, and my GRE wasn't so amazing (V670, Q540), but I think I had a few things in my favor. I have a completed Masters (an MFA, but a three-year program with a TAship) and an additional year of teaching at my university. My letters of recommendation were quite strong, and I submitted four of them. Also, I have reason to think that my writing sample was strong, though not flawless. I submitted two short papers as the sample, one a more loose, creative piece, and the other a short but tightly argued epistemology paper. I really think that worked in my favor. I do have a few honors and awards to my name, but little in the way of conferences and nothing published. At any rate, I can see that this has been a rough year. I have friends who have been rejected across the board, some of them for the second year out. Myself, I think the writing sample is worth more than the GRE, but probably every application is weighed differently. Good luck to everyone, and calmness to those still waiting!