somethingwitty

Idk much about AI ethics, but University of Oregon is strong in continental philosophy, and they have Colin Koopman who does stuff with data ethics (informed by his background in continental philosophy--it's pretty cool stuff) and they recently hired Ramon Alvarado, who just taught a graduate seminar on artificial intelligence in the fall. Of the two, Alvarado seems to work more on AI specifically. And one of my friends had Alvarado has her honors thesis advisor and she only had positive things to say about him!

I'd say Emory is best if you vibe with pluralism or if you consider psychoanalysis to be one of your top interests (Noëlle McAfee is there, and she directs the Psychoanalytic Studies certificate program, which you can do in tandem with your PhD in philosophy; Rocio Zambrana does work in Marxism, critical theory, and Hegel). That said, by my and my mentors' assessment, they lean *heavily* toward American pragmatism, so if that ain't your cup of tea, you might look elsewhere. But I do second what @Olórin said -- they really give their grad students a lot of incredible benefits (e.g., $31,000 stipend ? ). Emory was my top choice, and I have similar interests to you. Stony Brook and PSU are also both good options (Penn esp. for philosophy of race), I applied to both and was rejected, but I didn't see myself as a particularly good fit at these departments. I have heard of some infighting at PSU though. Echoing @PolPhil, University of Chicago would also be a great destination and I would also suggest Northwestern (both schools are PGR-ranked, so if you find that important, there ya go). Chicago also seems like a really cool city in which to study philosophy, e.g. the Chicago-Area Consortium in German Philosophy. I can't imagine you could go wrong with University of Toronto either (e.g., they have Rebecca Comay and a good amount of other scholars working in the continental tradition). I think a main draw--at least for me--about these programs in particular is that they really give you an opportunity to do philosophy in both the analytic and continental traditions. Obviously if you've been accepted to the three programs listed, my last paragraph doesn't really matter all that much, but ?‍♂️

Waitlisted at Villanova after my interview. Three interview invites, three waitlists ☹️

Thank you!!! It's been a tough application season, so it's nice to finally have some good news. ? Good luck to you as well!

I had only applied to the M.A. because to apply to the Ph.D. you need a Master's (which I do not have), but I guess they liked my application enough to petition the Graduate School to make an exception--a huge honor, and it still doesn't feel real. Guaranteed four years of funding, but exact details will be in the official letter (which I have not yet received)

So I was originally accepted to the M.A. at Western's Center for Theory and Criticism, but I received a surprising email from the director that they have decided to admit me directly to the doctoral program?? Idk, I got my hopes up too many times this cycle so I need to email to confirm, but I believe a tentative 'yay' is warranted nonetheless!

Not strictly a philosophy program, but I have been accepted to Western's Theory and Criticism program!

Oh yeah, and I was rejected from Penn State via email. Rats!

Rejected from CUNY via portal. Wasn't emailed or nothin'. Shoot dang.

Rejection from Emory via email yesterday. V sad, as this was my top choice. C'est la vie. Also assuming rejections from Penn State and Toronto.

Waitlisted at Boston College (via email yesterday) and DePaul (via email 2/7)

Cheers! And congrats to you as well ☺️ It's unfortunate that there isn't a lot of time to prepare, but seeing as the interviews are only 20 minutes long, I think over-preparing might've hurt me rather than helped. Mine will be on Wednesday morning ? so I will be sure to let you know what it was like once I'm done!

Invited to interview at Boston College via email today!

And they have like 5 PhD spots available? Yikes. Interviews are only supposed to be like 20 minutes long ... not a lot of time to show how (un)qualified I am ?

Just received an email from DePaul's DGS that I've been invited for an interview!

My guess is that they'll release sometime next week (at the earliest). Perhaps the 28th if they're fond of Thursdays. I just can't imagine the adcom getting through that many apps in less than a week, but who knows. Wouldn't mind hearing back sooner (but only if it's happy news!!!!! they can keep the negativity to themselves ? )

And it might help to look through some of the other "am I competitive/what are my chances/am I good enough/etc" threads on this forum to see what some people (i.e., those who are more qualified than me) have said in response to others, as I think their advice is pretty generalizable. This cycle is going to be decidedly shitty, so I wish you the best of luck in advance!

Can't really speak to your qualifications because I'm applying right now, too, but you should know--assuming you're applying this cycle--that University of Chicago has suspended admissions due to the pandemic and won't bring new students in until Fall 2022 ?

do you per chance know which of those schools don't fully fund all of their PhD students? ? And good to know about Villanova--I hadn't heard that that was a problem there.

So, the Pluralist's Guide has actually moved sites, and the list is updated here (2019/2020): https://sites.google.com/view/pluralist-guide-to-philosophy/program-recommendations/continental-philosophy?authuser=0. From what I've seen looking through programs, a lot (though certainly not all) of the continental-leaning Catholic/Jesuit universities have people working in philosophy of religion (e.g., Boston College, Georgetown, Loyola, etc.). That said, I don't know about the realities on the ground--this is just from their department pages and the specializations listed by the professors, and it seems like sometimes these aren't updated as frequently as one would like. But I definitely agree with @UndergradDad in that it might be better to focus in on specific philosophers/topics to narrow down your search, as the continental tradition covers a pretty big spectrum of philosophies and certain programs that may have strengths in one part of the continental tradition may not have strengths in others, so you really have to parse through current and past courses and professors' specializations (and if you have the time, recent publications) to get a better feel of things.

Hi there, I have no feedback to give regarding programs, but I can give you some resources that I've found helpful. I referred you to this spreadsheet (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1yb_yciijFGEp5roVKYJ40U4eiREo3ZQTeSQkEjGMSsg/edit#gid=1857768419), and it has info about MA programs' funding (scroll over the notes next to the 'Funding' column). In addition, https://fundedphilma.weebly.com/ is a good resource, though I'm unsure of how recently it was updated. Also, http://dailynous.com/2015/11/18/ma-programs-in-philosophy-fund-students/, but again, the article is from 2015, so things may have changed since then, esp. with the pandemic. If you are interested in continental philosophy, check SPEP (http://www.spep.org/resources/graduate-programs/ )--though their link is currently not working for me--and the Pluralist's Guide (https://sites.google.com/view/pluralist-guide-to-philosophy/program-recommendations/continental-philosophy?authuser=0). As far as continental philosophy goes, in the US, your best bet would probably be Miami University (OH), as they seem to place really well into continental PhD programs (e.g., Emory, DePaul, Vanderbilt, etc., and even some top-50 PGR schools like Notre Dame and CUNY), though it seems like Georgia State, given the nature of their program, might equip you better for both continental and more analytic programs, which does increase your options (and you might just find new interests!). All this said, I may not be the best source, as I'm not in grad school yet. I'm sure a lot of people will refer you to the PGR, which is a good starting place, but given your interests, I think it's probably important to have other resources, too. Good luck!

@hassanJD Here is the spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1yb_yciijFGEp5roVKYJ40U4eiREo3ZQTeSQkEjGMSsg/edit#gid=339976266 And here is one that updates regularly about whether programs are waiving the GRE: https://frederick-choo.weebly.com/gre-philosophy-2021-admission.html

Cal State Long Beach is a partially funded MA, and they've placed a student at CU. So has Oklahoma State, Western Michigan, and University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, all of which are funded or partially funded--and that's just from my very brief look at the graduate students page. I would go there and look at the grad students' information and see where those who have MAs are coming from, and then look into those programs and see if any interest you!

I am currently in the process of applying, so I certainly don't have much experience, but I think you should know that UC Boulder is reducing the size of their cohort this cycle, making it all the more competitive (check: https://frederick-choo.weebly.com/gre-philosophy-2021-admission.html and https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1yb_yciijFGEp5roVKYJ40U4eiREo3ZQTeSQkEjGMSsg/edit#gid=1857768419 for more info about programs, updated regularly). In light of that, it might be better to focus on applying elsewhere (but that's up to you, ultimately!), and I concur with @Potato Cactus @PolPhil and @PhilCoffee about applying to (funded) MA programs. Here is a list of funded or partially funded MAs in the US and Canada: https://fundedphilma.weebly.com/ Good luck, my friend, and don't give up hope!

Well, it's nice to know I have a shot! I'll definitely take the GRE, though most programs have already waived it. Miami University (OH) and Vanderbilt, both of which I'll be applying to, still require it, and you need to take it for uni-wide fellowships at Penn State, so it's a good idea to take the test. I think with some more time put into polishing it up, my writing sample will be solid. I talked to my letter writers about whether I should use a paper where I discuss my addiction, and they essentially told me that I should just be genuine and submit something that expresses who I am and the type of philosophy I want to do because my philosophical approach/orientation has been so informed by my past. I agree that I probably wouldn't want to be in a department where faculty had a myopic view of addiction, but I also recognize that a lot of times people can be influenced, often unconsciously, by intuitive prejudices, and I don't think I can fault anyone for that. And, as @Sigabanoted, there can be legitimate extenuating circumstances. I hadn't considered you first example, but, in my opinion, this would be a valid reason, and one that wouldn't reflect poorly on a department (indeed, it would seem to me that if this were the case, they would be invested in helping someone who needs it, and that's admirable on all fronts). I've heard from some of my professors that an alarming number of people in academia have struggled or are struggling with addiction, and helping someone who is currently in the throes of it can exhaust a lot of resources (monetary and emotional), so I can understand the desire to avoid extra (potential) complications. All in all, I recognize that addiction is complicated and a sensitive issue, but I'm going to be authentically me (without oversharing) and hope for the best. Thank you both for your input!