2013 Applicants (Philosophy)

[incontradiction]

What are people's thoughts on reducing time on a PhD if you already have an MA.  One of the programs to which I am admitted says that you can enter as a second year student (which would mean I lose a year of fellowship and no teaching).  However, I read in a lot of places that rushing into the market may prove harmful, and graduates should take their time.

 

I know it's a personal issue with a lot of complicating factors, but I'm curious to hear other opinions on the matter.

 

Some people have reservations about staying in school longer than necessary. I'm not one of those people. Another year as a student can't really hurt, or so it seems to me. 

[anon530]

I got it at 7:30. It seemed like a personal email, though it may very well have been a well-written form letter with my name on top. No idea if they're still sending them out. 

If anyone else got waitlisted, I'd be eager to hear what your impression was of the email. Mine seemed positive about possibly getting a real offer. 

 

if you don't mind me asking, was your wait-list email solicited or unsolicited? 

[HomelessSophist]

Interesting batch of schools. What is your AOI? and where are you getting your BA? Pardon if I'm being too nosy, haha. This process fascinates me.

 

Really continental, I guess

 

"Existentialism" (I kind of feel uncomfortable saying that), Kierkegaard, Aesthetics,  Hermeneutics, and trying to do get into Levinas and Ricoeur before I graduate.

 

I'm coming out of mid-tier Florida school (I'm not being more specific because I'm weird and paranoid, not because you're being particularly nosy).

[incontradiction]

if you don't mind me asking, was your wait-list email solicited or unsolicited?

Unsolicited.

[lovephil]

Come onn Texas Austin. Accept me from the waitlist! Blaghhh.

[incontradiction]

Come onn Texas Austin. Accept me from the waitlist! Blaghhh.

I'm rooting for you! (Though admittedly it's because I want to get accepted off of BU's!)

[LawrencevonBuskirk]

So I just got a letter of acceptance to the Ph.D program at Marquette. It did not say that it's funded, but it also did not say that it's NOT funded. Any thoughts? I don't see any other results for Marquette this year.

[whateverquine]

Any news of a Fordham waitlist? Given that they aren't a top 50 school, I would think they would have quite a lengthy waitlist. Has anyone heard anything from them other than a full acceptance?

[crate]

Any news of a Fordham waitlist? Given that they aren't a top 50 school, I would think they would have quite a lengthy waitlist. Has anyone heard anything from them other than a full acceptance?

 

Not in a position to have any news, but also want to note that this isn't really fair to Fordham. They are probably a top 25 school for those interested in Continental, which is likely what most of their applicants are looking for. They might not delve as deeply as you think into their waitlist.

[lovephil]

I'm rooting for you! (Though admittedly it's because I want to get accepted off of BU's!)

 

Fair enough, haha. Let's hope I'm first up on Texas Austin's waitlist. I'm still waiting on CUNY, Columbia, Toronto, and Michigan- all of which I would take over Boston if I get in. But it's not looking good.

[incontradiction]

Fair enough, haha. Let's hope I'm first up on Texas Austin's waitlist. I'm still waiting on CUNY, Columbia, Toronto, and Michigan- all of which I would take over Boston if I get in. But it's not looking good.

I'm in a similar position. Waiting on CUNY, Toronto, UCSB, UMass, Ohio, and Brandeis, with another waitlist at Maryland. At least a few of those I would choose over BU.

[whateverquine]

Not in a position to have any news, but also want to note that this isn't really fair to Fordham. They are probably a top 25 school for those interested in Continental, which is likely what most of their applicants are looking for. They might not delve as deeply as you think into their waitlist.

 

Huh, I didn't know that. Since they aren't among the 29/28 schools ranked for 19th/20th century continental philosophy on Leiter, I didn't think they had that kind of draw. Maybe continental folks don't rely on the Leiter rankings...?

[hasbeen]

Huh, I didn't know that. Since they aren't among the 29/28 schools ranked for 19th/20th century continental philosophy on Leiter, I didn't think they had that kind of draw. Maybe continental folks don't rely on the Leiter rankings...?

Nope. I said this somewhere else too, but many of the programs on Leiter's list have only one or two Continental faculty members. Somehow that makes them Continental schools.

[lovephil]

Okay, so are we believing the Michigan post? Super mixed messages.

[278886]

So I just got a letter of acceptance to the Ph.D program at Marquette. It did not say that it's funded, but it also did not say that it's NOT funded. Any thoughts? I don't see any other results for Marquette this year.

 

I'm waiting on Marquette as well! Would you mind sharing your interests? I'm curious as to what applicants are looking for in the faculty there.

[bakedalaska]

Okay, so are we believing the Michigan post? Super mixed messages.

No clue ><

[incontradiction]

Second Michigan post, so I'd assume they're legit.

[superhamdi]

Anyone else rethinking the schools they applied to? I wish I applied to Vanderbilt and Emory. And I super wish there was a way to apply late.

 

Yes, I wish I would have applied to FEWER schools actually. I just freaked out and applied to A LOT. But I should have focused on schools that 1) I would actually want to go to if accepted and 2) only schools that fit my AOI. If I had been accepted at a school which didn't really fit my AOIs and nowhere else, it would be a really tricky situation.

 

 

Doing it only once in a lifetime would have been a dream! This is round three for me and though I have one acceptance, one wait-list, and three with no word or even implied word, (thus meaning there actually was more 'success' this time around) I still might end up going for round four!

 

You're a hero to us all!

[lovephil]

Second Michigan post, so I'd assume they're legit.

 

I'm crushed. 

[superhamdi]

Just accepted to Boston U. Finally an acceptance!

Congrats!!!

 

On the topic of visits....

 

Are others visiting the schools they have been accepted to?

 

On one hand, the common advice seems to be that visiting departments is the best thing to do.

 

On the other hand, I really don't care about the location of my school or what the campus is like or anything.  I just want to know that my POI's are not fleeing for another department in the next few years, and that they don't have extremely difficult temperments--the sort of info that I think I could gather through telephone conversations.

 

Do I really need to spend a week flying across the country to make my final decision?

I'm sort of questioning this too. Considering that some schools haven't notified admits until this week, it seems like a very short time frame to get it all in! For me, my father is going on a business trip (paid) to an area where I applied to a lot of schools, so I made plans to tag along and do it at that time. Thing is, I have the trip booked and I haven't been accepted to any schools in that area. To boot, I have been accepted to schools in other parts of the country, which I won't have time to visit now!

 

Their website says they are admit roughly 9 PhD students (if I recall correctly... I guess I could check, but well, here we are). Does it look to others like schools are cutting down on how many students they accept? If so, this would be good for the job market.

 

Yes, I've seen quite a few depts mention on their website that they are admitting fewer than usual this year. Congratulations on the acceptance BTW! I'm rooting for you! 

[LawrencevonBuskirk]

I'm waiting on Marquette as well! Would you mind sharing your interests? I'm curious as to what applicants are looking for in the faculty there.

 

In broad terms: 19th and 20th century continental.

 

More specifically: social and political philosophy, Marx and 20th century Marxism (esp. Frankfurt School Critical Theory), Arendt, "existentialism," Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, the French scene from 1940-1960 (i.e. Sartre, Merleau-Ponty, Beauvoir, and Camus), philosophy of language, meta-ethics.

 

In applying to Marquette, I was motivated more by the broad terms than by the specifics. My only other Ph.D offer so far is from Kentucky, and I think it might be a better fit for me overall (I don't know of anyone who does Marx at Marquette, whereas Kentucky has Arnold Farr who researches/teaches Marx and the Frankfurt School in depth).

 

I see there's another result posting from Marquette, also with no word on funding. Hmmmm.

[incontradiction]

For people with multiple admissions: when do you think you'll start notifying departments that you've declined? I have an interest in this since I've only been waitlisted as opposed to accepted.

Of course, some people have a lot of schools left to hear from, so they probably don't want to decline or accept any offers until they have all their options.

[lovephil]

I won't be able to decide on Boston until I hear back from everywhere, and especially until I know whether I'm in off the waitlist at Texas Austin or not. 

incontradiction: your waitlist from Maryland wa solicited, right? I'm wondering because I still haven't heard from Maryland, but GF search results tells me that someone was sought out by the admissions committee and put on the waitlist. This makes me wonder whether the rest of us who are just waiting aren't *really* on a waitlist at all.

[incontradiction]

Yes, I had contacted Dr. Rey. But he made it sound in his email like he was sending out waitlist notifications in the near future.

[Phil2013]

I am visiting a campus for a place I will probably attend, and in that case would decline my other offers after the visit if all seems well with the visit. However, I am on the waitlist for somewhere else which I would seriously consider also attending, so I'm not sure when I would inform said place I will visit...