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philosophygrad in who_got_in

Philosophy 2010

Aug 16, 2009 21:41

This is for anyone applying to Philosophy graduate programs during the 2009-2010 academic year. Please share acceptances, rejections, wait-list notifications, and so on.

Best of luck to everyone applying!

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What to do? anonymous October 5 2009, 19:10:07 UTC

Hello folks. I am new around here, and have been up all night reading old entries from the previous class. I am hoping for a little advice. Here's where I am at:

My overall GPA is a nominal 3.4 because my first two years were not good for me. I am a "non-traditional" student in that I left college for 6 years to play in a rock band :). Since I've been back, I have done much better (major GPA 3.9). Recently I have decided to pursue further studies in Philosophy. I am currently finishing up an interdisciplinary degree program entailing religious studies and applied ethics. I am not at a great school, but rather a lower ranked (50ish -PGR) state university. My writing is relatively strong. We have no well known philosophers at my school and so my letters of rec. while laudatory, will probably not bear much weight. My GRE score was unfortunately only 1300. (680 V; 620Q).

Now for the question. Does this pretty much put me out of the running for any top 20 phd programs?

I am considering retaking the GRE's, but I don't think I will do substantially better without some tutoring in math, which might take some time, time that I don't have at the moment.

Second questions: Is it wise to take a year off to improve my application, particularly my GRE score? I have heard differing accounts on this. Or would two years pursuing an M.A. be more beneficial? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Re: What to do? anonymous October 5 2009, 19:25:38 UTC

You should pursue an MA at a good program if you are really serious about this (and can afford it, etc.)

Re: What to do? philosophygrad October 6 2009, 02:46:14 UTC

Yeah, I agree with the previous response that it might be profitable to check out some MA programs. The MA programs Leiter lists on the gourmet report are going to prepare you for a PhD program, and most of them have established channels with schools where they often place their students. Be sure to look at their placement records. See where their MA grads go for their PhD, and choose the one that places students in places you'd like to go.

Re: What to do? anonymous October 6 2009, 20:51:15 UTC

Northern Illinois, Western Michigan, Texas A&M, and UW-Milwaukee are AWESOME MA programs that fully fund many of their students. An MA from these places is a sure admission boost, and you'll probably find yourself way ahead of the curve upon entering a Ph.D. program.

Re: What to do? anonymous October 6 2009, 16:39:53 UTC

well I can't really afford it, but thanks for the advice.

Re: What to do? philosophygrad October 7 2009, 02:09:08 UTC

Affording it shouldn't be the concern because the majority of the MA programs listed on the Philosophical Gourmet (the "top 8") provide full tuition remission plus a stipend for the majority of the people they admit. The stipend isn't as much as you'd get in a PhD program, but it is enough to scrape by without going into debt.

Seriously, check out some of these programs. Another commenter mentioned NIU, WMU, and others (also Georgia State is a good one). These schools provide full funding w/ a stipend, and WMU & GSU provide detailed placement stats.

Here's the link for the WMU placement: http://www.wmich.edu/philosophy/placement.pdf

Here's the link for the GSU placement: http://www2.gsu.edu/~wwwphi/4632.html

These two schools are not the only MA programs that provide such a detailed placement record, so it's worth going to the philosophical gourmet list and seeing each program.

Here's that link: http://www.philosophicalgourmet.com/maprog.asp

The funny thing about the top-ranked MA program, Tufts, is that their funding isn't always as strong as some of the other programs, so that is something to keep in mind.

Re: What to do? anonymous October 7 2009, 02:24:38 UTC

To make things easier, here's links to two more:

NIU: http://www.niu.edu/phil/programMA/placement.shtml

UWM: http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/Philosophy/placement.html

Re: What to do? anonymous October 6 2009, 16:40:27 UTC

well I can't really afford it, but few can I suppose. Thanks for the advice.

Re: What to do? anonymous October 7 2009, 22:56:52 UTC

Given that I am not much of a candidate for phd programs, how likely is it that I would be in the running for these top 8 (or so) MA programs, w/ funding? (this is the original poster).

Re: What to do? anonymous October 8 2009, 03:30:46 UTC

Hard to say, but a lot of these places specialize in otherwise promising students from lesser-known schools or with blemishes that get in the way of going directly to well-regarded PhD programs. Obviously, you'll want to use your personal statement to try to explain away your iffy GPA, noting your icky initial grades vs. your later awesome grades, which are a better indicator of your philosophical ability.

Re: What to do? anonymous October 10 2009, 19:27:08 UTC

So no one has any statistical information or insight on the GPA/GRE acceptance averages for the top MA programs?

Re: What to do? anonymous October 23 2009, 19:35:18 UTC

Anecdotally, yes. You'll need either a high GPA or a high GRE or middling of both (or high of both!). High GPA is like 3.8 up. High GRE is like 1400 up. Middling is like 3.4 up and 1300 up.

Of course this is extremely rough and exceptions are not uncommon (esp people with both fantastic GRE and GPA).

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