The_Last_Thylacine
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Posts posted by The_Last_Thylacine
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4 hours ago, Ikari Gendo said:
I'd send ALL programs an e-mail, asking if they could provide any feedback on my application package. Then I'd ask the advice of my letter writers.
What is the topic of your writing sample? Maybe I could provide some feedback, if it is something I am familiar with.
In the interest of professionalism, I'd probably not recommend asking for application advice from the programs who rejected you.
- HootyHoo and Marcus_Aurelius
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1 hour ago, you'll_never_get_to_heaven said:
...and just accepted into CSU L.A., which is/was in a three-way tie for M.A. programs for me! No information about funding, etc., just a brief but pleasant email from the director of graduate admissions. I've been cutting everyone a break this admissions cycle, so I've only expected brief emails from anyone and I've been delighted to get anything else. Everything from simply processing documents to evaluating funding and hiring freezes has become so much more difficult
Yeah, the faculty at UNM are really up to some interesting work that is very hard to confine to any bubble, and all of them have been really pleasant.
Hey, a couple things:
(i) Congratulations!
(ii) I strongly recommend CSULA over UNM.
(iii) Try to post in the right forum! This is a forum for Ph.D. decisions!
Good luck with the decision!
- directingdirections and PolPhil
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This is not the place for this and this comment is irrelevant and annoying, and please don't neg me. But there is a paper out there called "Possible Girls," about (I think; I've never read it) how if modal realism is true, then there are actual worlds where lonely people have partners.
https://philpapers.org/rec/SINPG -
2 hours ago, ArizonaAdmit said:
I'm one of the folks who had a funding offer retracted from Arizona, so I'm happy this thread is here. It sucks, and it was a bit devastating given that it was my only outright offer, but I'll survive.
What's starting to get almost as frustrating as having my funding offer retracted is the comments from professional philosophers on the blogosphere. (I know, I just shouldn't bother reading them.) Perhaps my closeness to the situation is making me read things that aren't really there, but so many comments have the tone of 'those naive kids just didn't read their offer letters closely, silly little idiots.' There are comments that literally say "that's just the way the world works." Is it even possible to utter that sentence without condescension?
I haven't seen many grad students saying things like "this is illegal, we should file a suit, they need to reverse the decision." I don't know of any of the actual admits affected by this saying that. From what I can tell, we've all been saying that it's unfortunate and upsetting. It seems like it's a violation of the April 15 resolution, to which Arizona has committed - albeit one that's more understandable given that we're in the middle of a pandemic with huge economic implications. We've perhaps suggested that alternative cost-cutting measures should have been enacted, given the April 15 resolution (though I fully admit to not know the details of Arizona's budget, maybe this really was the only or the all-things-considered best option).
Yet all the comments from professional philosophers, with doctorates and tenure-track or tenured positions, are basically "bUt It'S nOt IlLeGaL.' Yes, we are aware.
Have you ever TA'd an ethics class and had an undergraduate respond to the claim 'X is wrong' or 'A shouldn't have done X' with 'but X isn't illegal'? I feel like I spend so much time explaining to undergraduates that, while they may be correct, they're missing the point at issue. I feel like I need to be doing the same thing with professional philosophers in blog comments right now.
I'm also tired of seeing comments suggesting that I should have seen this coming. The university did commit to the April 15 resolution. That absolutely gives me reason to expect that I'll have my offer until April 15, and it is completely irrelevant whether it's legal or not for them to rescind it. It doesn't follow from it not being illegal that I should have seen it coming. I want to comment and remind these philosophers that it takes them months, perhaps years, and several drafts to get their arguments in publishable shape - perhaps they should consider that before they post the first thoughts that come to their mind.
My frustration is probably causing me to be uncharitable. But I figure a venting thread is the place to be uncharitable to people in a position of relative power.
TL;DR:
Graduate students: University of Arizona violated the Council of Graduate Schools' April 15 Resolution, to which the university had committed. That's not good.
Professional philosophers, with doctorates and tenure-track or tenured jobs, in every single blog comment:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0OP2Hmup-Y
I sympathize with you, and I'm so sorry that you're going through this. It is so easy for anyone to say they "saw it coming" before you did. This is essentially what happens after every football game. I hope you land on your feet somehow. Did you accept their offer to defer until next year at least?
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I'd probably say just go for one of the funded MA programs in the U.S., but be thinking about who will write your letters for these applications. If you wait for a long time, you run the risk that your instructors won't remember you.
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29 minutes ago, KarlX said:
So, should I sit to wait for possible news? Is it better to solicit the two programs and ask whether they plan to freeze admission off the waitlists? I'm concerned that my acts will cause some terrible consequence for me, though I realize that it may be a long shot that I could be admitted off the waitlist.
It's completely reasonable to inquire about your chances at places where you've been waitlisted. In fact, as long as you do so respectfully, it may even help your chances of admission since it conveys interest. Moreover, given the uncertainty that's being caused by COVID-19, I think it is even more understandable for you to solicit information about these things.
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2 hours ago, PhilCoffee said:
I wonder the possible impactc of COVID-19 on 2020 application season. There are already hiring freezings.
Will the schools admit less grad students or cut the funding for each one admitted? Or both?
Right now, it looks like graduate schools can put freezes on admission from the waitlists. This just happened at UVA. It's awful.
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45 minutes ago, Flossifer said:
I was just speaking to a UT Austin professor, and i'm not sure if it's official but he said that all their summer courses will be online, and he's almost entirely sure that it will be the same for the fall...what a bummer. I'm not going to be attending there, but it doesn't bode well for anywhere else.
? Are you an undergrad there now?
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Post here for an MA offer that you either accept or decline.
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Post here for offers you either decline or accept.
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I hope that the April 15th deadline remains intact. I would also implore prospective students not to ask for an extension beyond the 15th to make a decision. If even one school grants an extension, it has the potential to complicate the entire application season for so many other applicants. Ultimately, I'm incredibly saddened that so many people have been/will be unable to visit campuses this season. Prospective students (and so many others) have forgone much in an effort to mitigate the potential consequences of this virus, but I think that sticking to the April 15th deadline is one (seemingly small but incredibly meaningful) thing that we can do to reduce the negative impact of COVID-19.
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On 3/17/2020 at 8:49 AM, you'll_never_get_to_heaven said:
Anyone know a whole lot about CSU LA and/or CSU Long Beach? The only concern I have about UNM at this point is that it is not in a location with a cluster of universities, although since it is an M.A. that is less of a concern. Still, it's obvious that there's a larger scholarly community in any coastal city. The Stony Brook program looks actually pretty good and the students I've emailed are very enthused about the program (and it really is unique), but UNM has reliable placement data and seems to be overall a safer bet. It's also a growing department with younger faculty, so I'd imagine the faculty have more of an actual reason to invest in current students than at more esteemed universities with several professors in their 70s and 80s.
It's been a while since I've researched MA programs, but I remember CSULA as having a good placement record. That might be a good reason to seriously consider CSULA over UNM.
Edit: I looked at UNM's placement. In my opinion, the placement record does not seem very strong there when compared to CSULA.
Personally, I would choose CSULA. PM me if you'd like to talk things through any further.
I also saw you inquiring about Texas Tech. I went there and had a positive experience, so feel free to PM me about that too.
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19 minutes ago, Cocnutshubris said:
@originalcoconuts I am glad you are not coming to my department. I like how people are getting shut out and you come on here to whinge about getting into multiple programs. I wish admissions had yeeted you off this continent.
?
I do wish that we could refrain from attacking others here.
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18 hours ago, Mash89 said:
Was wondering whether the dissertation writing years also require tuition in UT Austin philosophy phd, so that tuition exemption through TA'ship etc. is required for a tuition reduction during those years.
In other words, if you have no coursework, do you still pay tuition and thus need to teach for its reduction? Obviously you need it for the stipend, but I wonder about the tuition aspect.
Thanks all.
If I remember correctly, you do still have to pay tuition during the later years of the program.
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On 2/29/2020 at 12:47 PM, Coconuts&Chloroform said:
So wait, you argue that Spinoza interprets Heidegger?
Anyway, I'll be frank. Your GRE scores aren't good. It's hard to see how they could be explained away by your having an underprivileged childhood, given that that apparently didn't prevent you from doing very well in college. If you don't get in this year, you should devote considerable attention to studying for the GRE with a view towards re-applying.
Have a look at the results page, and see who posts GRE scores along with their acceptances to ranked programs - you'll find that you really want to aim for about 165/165. Sounds daunting, but it's doable.
In my opinion, the applicant should aim for at least 16X Verbal; 15X Quantitative. My friend with a 162/155 got into a lot of places (UT, UNC, USC, Rutgers, Northwestern, Davis).
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Searle's research interest is being a perv.
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53 minutes ago, philosopuppy said:
I'm going to school P unless i get more money from school Q, and I'm currently first on a waitlist for the desired money at Q. If Q comes through I'm going there. In the meantime, should I accept P now or wait until the 15th?
You should almost certainly wait until the 15th.
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23 minutes ago, Sarpedon7325 said:
Just sent my acceptance to Notre Dame!
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6 minutes ago, Marcus_Aurelius said:
I've accepted Yale, for the joint program in Classics and Philosophy (Classics track)
Declined Stanford and Toronto today and took myself off NYU waitlist
That's great!
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Unfortunately, it seems to me that these are both programs designed to bring in large amounts of money to U. Chicago, all while depriving the students of valuable resources. At a place like U. Chicago, it isn't likely that Master's students will receive nearly as much attention as Ph.D. candidates. Moreover, placement from the MAPH into philosophy Ph.D. programs are poor, especially given the putative eminence of the University of Chicago.
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On 3/23/2019 at 12:35 AM, HopOnMyCrates said:
Let me preface by saying that I am a wee baby in regards to how academia operates, including the intricacies of the admissions process. If my question seems naïve, that's because it is. Similarly, I don't know the etiquette of name dropping acceptances and such on here. If you'd like further specification I'd be happy to oblige.
My situation: I've got an admissions offer at a PGR T20 PhD program and am waitlisted at a slightly lower rated school, however I think it might be a better fit. I just got back from the waitlist school's prospectives day and loved everything about it. I'm visiting the other school in early April, and intend to make my decision between the two shortly thereafter. The variable here is in regards to when I might hear back from waitlist school. Obviously this varies year to year and school to school, but how close to April 15 do people typically hear back from waitlist schools?
PM'd you.
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Anyone with questions about Texas Tech can DM me.
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Just now, fromthearmchair said:
Declined offers at Wash U, UBC, and UMass Amherst. Also off the waitlist at Arizona and UCSD. I'm done.
Good luck!Would you please PM me where you accepted if you don't want to post here?
Venting Thread - 2019 Applicants
in Philosophy
Posted
Feel free to PM me or other successful applicants on here.