Canadian MA

[emm_22]

Hi there, 

 

I'm looking for some advice on which Masters program to choose in Canada. I've been offered admission at Queen's, Toronto, UVic, and Waterloo. I already rejected Queen's (I did my undergrad here so it's time to try some place new), though am stuck between the other 3. 

 

While I know most people would say Toronto right off the bat (as it's the highest ranking by far), the problem is they don't have a thesis portion (something I would REALLY enjoy doing, since I never had the opportunity as an undergrad, and would like to get research experience before going on to a PhD). It is also a larger program combined with PhD students. 

 

UVic has the advantage of being a very small program, with no competition from PhD students, and great individual attention/assistance with PhD apps though I'm unsure of how well they rank...

 

All 3 have offered full tuition and living costs, with UVic offering an additional 5,000 to pay for travel etc. 

 

My ideal area is Philosophy of Mind and Cognition, and more broadly, Epistemology. 

 

Any advice would be appreciated! 

 

Cheers. 

[maxhgns]

If it were me, I'd probably opt for UVic. The extra money is a very nice and useful bonus, it's on peoples' radars, and it's an all-around nice place to be. Plus, it's a dedicated MA program now, so you won't have to fight to stay afloat like you would at Toronto (remember: PhD ranking =/= MA ranking). Waterloo seems decent to me, and the community there is close-knit and pleasant, but in my mind UVic stands out as a better place for the MA.

 

YMMV.

[lovephil]

UVic! I have heard unpleasant things about Toronto's MA program. MA students get lost in the already very large grad student crowd. You want, out of your MA, great letters applying to PhD programs. You might get that at Toronto, but you would have to wow people fast. 

 

Good choice turning down Queen's. 

MA programs are super quick. You want an environment that is stimulating, supportive, and as least stressful as possible. 

[bakedalaska]

I went to TO's MA, and had a positive experience there. But they work their MA students to the bone.

 

If you do epistemology, Patrick Rysiew at UVic is very good and you would likely have him all to yourself, which is important. However, Jennifer Nagel is teaching a grad class on epistemology next year at TO, and a letter from her would be more weighty IMHO. What lovephil says is true, but true of any 1 yr MA program: you have to impress the right people in 3 months in classes with PhD students in their 4th and 5th years -- its hard to shine in a classroom populated by genuine specialists.

 

As for mind/cognition, there's no real comparison b/w TO and elsewhere in Canada, besides UBC. Mohan Matthen is fantastic, as is Benj Hellie.

Edited April 5, 2013 by bakedalaska

[Keithkwok]

Can anyone comment on ethics in Canada? Which uni is better in ethics?

[Keithkwok]

Actually I am surprised that you all recommend UVic, given the fact that it is a 1 year program, and they do not publicize placement records on their website. Any more details? Thanks!

[Duns Eith]

Old thread is old.

I don't know about MA ethics programs, but MA's need not specialize. You're going for a solid curricular foundation (more breadth than depth) and an opportunity to write your best possible writing sample for PhD.

[Keithkwok]

1 hour ago, Turretin said:

Old thread is old.

I don't know about MA ethics programs, but MA's need not specialize. You're going for a solid curricular foundation (more breadth than depth) and an opportunity to write your best possible writing sample for PhD.

Thank you very much! BTW, do you have any idea about the up-to-date ranking of Canadian MA programs?

[maxhgns]

On 10/1/2016 at 0:30 PM, syf08678 said:

Thank you very much! BTW, do you have any idea about the up-to-date ranking of Canadian MA programs?

There is no such ranking. The PGR mentions SFU and sometimes one or two others, and that's about it. I think it's safe to say that most of the MA programs in Canada are pretty good, and they're not nearly as variable in quality as American MAs. The same is true for undergrad, of course. Because specialization isn't so important at the Master's level, things even out a lot more, even if some programs are more oriented towards certain kinds of things.

 

On 9/30/2016 at 11:15 AM, syf08678 said:

Actually I am surprised that you all recommend UVic, given the fact that it is a 1 year program, and they do not publicize placement records on their website. Any more details? Thanks!

Most Canadian MA programs don't publicize their placement records, and it's not unusual for a Canadian MA to be just one year long, although there is a growing tendency towards two years.

 

On 9/30/2016 at 8:54 AM, syf08678 said:

Can anyone comment on ethics in Canada? Which uni is better in ethics?

Queen's is hands-down the best for applied ethics at both the PhD and MA levels. McGill has a solid bioethics MA program (distinct from its philosophy program), and it's good otherwise for applied ethics. Toronto is good for applied, and probably the best for metaethics.

 

On 10/1/2016 at 0:30 PM, syf08678 said:

 

[Keithkwok]

Thank you so much maxhgns,

Extremely helpful!

[Schopenhauerfanboy]

The University of Calgary offers an exceptional M.A. program and has placed recent graduates at NYU, Harvard, UPenn, Ohio State, U-Bloomington, Toronto, etc. 
The PhD program also doesn't "eclipse" the MA program: students in the latter still get ample attention from faculty, are fully integrated, receive ample funding, including SSHRC work-shops,etc
 The program is, however, geared towards students in Philosophy of Science, Logic, and the History of Analytic Philosophy, as the PGR rankings suggest. Nevertheless, there's a number of very reputable faculty members working in ethics, applied ethics, and related areas (e.g. action theory, ethics of belief, etc). 

 

Edited December 14, 2016 by Schopenhauerfanboy