MattDest

HEY!!
 
I'm a philosopher and a lady. I'm not an applicant, but I was (once upon a time). Also, I'd say there is a dearth of women in philosophy, considering that only 15% of tenured and tenure track faculty in philosophy are women (and that's reflected in the participants on this forum, when I brought up an issue of gender in another thread, it was promptly decided that such a problem was not philosophical and wasn't relevant to philosophy).
 
Anyhow, I'm a woman and I think I may be the only one around here (unless you're one too, then that makes two). If you wanna chat I'm more than happy to!
 
ETA: I have a lot of underrepresented group specific information about graduate studies (especially funding) which I'm happy to talk about. If you want to, I'm happy to send it along.

Sorry my dumb morning brain though dearth meant excess. I recant. There is definitely a dearth of women philosophers, both here and in academia. 

It's certainly a dearth, and it's certainly a widespread problem in philosophy. Luckily, programs like this one from UCSD are working to change it. 

DON'T WATCH LOST! If you are like most people, you will become heavily invested in the amazing series and will want answers to all of your burning questions. Then, in the series finale, the writers will crush your dreams and make you wish you hadn't wasted all of that time. 
 
Another series like that is Battlestar Gallactica (Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica.). Amazing series, piss-poor ending. 

I'll be the optimistic one and predict that at least one program will send out first-round acceptances tomorrow, January 17.

Should we start a pool? 

I worked in graduate admissions (Emerson College, usually MAs/MFAs for arts programs) and we did call students. It was seen as a nice perk, a personal touch. If they call, be excited, say thank you, and hang up when you're done. 

FWIW, this is my own experience in the discipline and what advisors of mine have relayed to me seems to confirm it as well. 

January 20th!

I dunno... it's a monday and I want it to be true...

I don't have any solid information on this, but I'm with Loric on this one (the sky is falling! pigs are flying! Hell has frozen over!   ). I think it might look bad if you are e-mailing them while the application process is going on. Ideally, this is something you should have done *before* you applied if you were going to do it at all. That said, I can't imagine that doing so would be a huge detriment to your chances either. I wouldn't fret about it either way. 

I don't have any solid information on this, but I'm with Loric on this one (the sky is falling! pigs are flying! Hell has frozen over!   ). I think it might look bad if you are e-mailing them while the application process is going on. Ideally, this is something you should have done *before* you applied if you were going to do it at all. That said, I can't imagine that doing so would be a huge detriment to your chances either. I wouldn't fret about it either way. 

The work that people can get done when application anxiety sets in is phenomenal. 

The work that people can get done when application anxiety sets in is phenomenal. 

Great list, Hopephilly. Thanks!
 
I was perusing the general forum and saw someone (ianfaircloud) posted an additional list detailing admission dates over a number of philosophy programs:
 
Both are very helpful, and my hat's off to both of you.
 
 

The work that people can get done when application anxiety sets in is phenomenal. 

I can just see your letter now... "He is very persistent, and hyper-aware of deadlines."
 
That said, I wish I had this sort of tenacity. 

Wow, great advice. I'll add some of the things that worked for me. 
 
Spreadsheet: I also created a spreadsheet for my applications on Google Docs. I had the same sort of information, plus a little more (when their earliest acceptances were posted). When I finished working on an application, I changed the row color from white to yellow, indicating that my part was done and I was waiting on letter writers. Once I got notified that they had all been submitted, I changed it to blue. Now, as the acceptances/waitlists/rejections roll in, I'll change the row colors accordingly. It makes it really easy to get a "big picture" type of progress update. 
 
Nitty-Gritty Application: I would get all of your materials collected in one area, and then complete all of the applications in one time period. This makes it easier on your letter-writers (who don't have to wait for each individual school that you apply to), and on yourself (you don't have to remember which applications are still incomplete). 
 
Transcripts: Order transcripts all at once. Do not order them when you are applying to each school. Instead, make sure you have your schools narrowed down early and print off a copy of each school's address to have them send it to each school that requires it. I just sent my transcripts to every school that I applied, because I didn't want to have to deal with the process over again. But if your school charges a lot or you'd rather not go through the hassle, just look at the guidelines for each school. 
 
Letter-Writers: Ask them as early as you can. In an ideal situation, they can give you advice about where to apply.  Once you have narrowed down the list of schools (preferably with their help), send them a list of schools with the application deadlines. Don't pester them endlessly, they have done this before and they know how important it is. 

oh man wtfever

you should be jealous my fallback is independent study in Thailand

I could go to Chang mail and hang out around a Tai chi school while I continue my study...........

..... only live once .....

I decided to move to Colorado instead of Thailand. maybe that's kind of a mistake.. but the legal pot and cheap cost of living, (and the abundance of white people) make it an attractive option.

I probably won't get a smoking hot wife like I would in Thailand .... maybe.... and my money would go further there...... but I might feel insecure about the visa situation ... I won't feel as secure in Thailand as in the US....

...but smoking hot babe guaranteed.

....I don't know what do you think??????

Metaphysics of Furniture, esp. the special composition question relating to desk chairs. 

Metaphysics of Furniture, esp. the special composition question relating to desk chairs. 

Metaphysics of Furniture, esp. the special composition question relating to desk chairs. 

Hey all,
 
I sent in my first 5 applications (Columbia, Northwestern, Chicago, Purdue, Penn State) with a huge mistake (a half completed sentence that ended a paragraph) in my writing sample. I only discovered the issue a few days ago, and thought all hope was lost with those programs.
 
But all hope isn't lost. If you've made a mistake like I did, some programs are willing to let you fix the issue. Just contact the graduate admissions officer via email and explain the mistake.
 
I hope this helps someone.
 
 

Thanks. It's not an undergrad journal.  It's a legit journal in my main area of interest.  I'm apprehensive about naming it though.