Greater Philadelphia Philosophy Consortium

 

 

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Graduate School and Career Information for Philosophy Graduate and Undergraduate Students

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We have identified these websites with graduate school and philosophy-related career information to let undergraduate and graduate students in philosophy know that there can, in fact, be “life after a degree in philosophy.” We feel it is important that before you sign away the next 5 or more years of your life to a graduate school, you understand the range of questions you should ask yourself, your advisors, and your graduate program contacts so you can make the best decisions possible about your academic and career plans. Earning a Ph.D. in philosophy is not for everyone, but pursuing one isn’t the only reason to study philosophy!

 

Here you will find information on traditional philosophy Ph.D. programs and joint degree or interdisciplinary graduate programs that will allow you to continue your study of philosophy while preparing for a career in law, government, the sciences, or other humanities disciplines.

 

If you know of information that could be helpful to students in thinking about careers related to philosophy that we could make available through this site, please pass that information along to the webmaster.

 

 --Tara Timberman, Rowan University

 

SO YOU WANT A CAREER IN PHILOSOPHY?

These Websites Can Help You Find Answers to Your Questions

 

 

“A Non-Academic Career? Information, Resources, And Background On Options For Philosophers,” provided by the American Philosophical Association: www.apa.udel.edu/apa/publications/texts/nonaintro.html

 

“Philosophy as a Profession: The Indiana University Public Opinion Laboratory Survey, 2002,” provided by the American Philosophical Association: www.apa.udel.edu/apa/profession/IUSurvey/index.html

 

“American Philosophical Association Guide to Graduate Programs in Philosophy,” provided by the American Philosophical Association (may require member log-on): www.apaonline.org/publications/gradguide

 

“The Philosophical Gourmet:  A ranking of graduate programs in Philosophy in the English Speaking World”: www.philosophicalgourmet.com/

 

“Philosophy Graduate Schools Friendly to Continental Philosophy,” Ferit Güven, Earlham College: www.earlham.edu/~phil/gradsch.htm

 

“The Philosophy Major’s Career Handbook,” provided by the Department of Philosophy of the University of Florida: http://web.phil.ufl.edu/ugrad/ugcrhbk.html

 

Greater Philadelphia Philosophy Consortium: Keep abreast of philosophy-related events in the Philadelphia region: www.udel.edu/GPPC/

 

Philosophy Resources on the Internet (EpistemeLinks): Information on jobs in philosophy www.epistemelinks.com/Main/MainJob.aspx

 

“What Can I do with a Major in Philosophy?,” from University of Texas at Austin. http://www.utexas.edu/student/careercenter/careers/phil.pdf

 

“Why Study Philosophy,” from The University of Louisiana at Lafayette.  Links to answers for commonly asked questions about career options for philosophy majors http://www.louisiana.edu/Academic/LiberalArts/PHIL/WhyStudyPhilosophy.html

  


GRADUATE SCHOOL ALTERNATIVES

TO EARNING AN M.A. OR PH.D. IN PHILOSOPHY

  

INTERDISCIPLINARY PROGRAMS

 

 

 

Emory University – Atlanta, GA. Masters and Ph.D. from The Graduate Institute of the Liberal Arts

Website: http://www.ila.emory.edu/

 

Program Description: The Graduate Institute of the Liberal Arts (ILA) is Emory University's institutional center for comparative and interdisciplinary studies across the social sciences and humanities. The Institute is one of the oldest interdisciplinary programs in the United States. Since the 1950s, the ILA has offered graduate students the opportunity to pursue doctoral work in the study of culture and society from historical, ethnographic and comparative perspectives.

 

 

Purdue University – West Lafayette, IN. Ph.D. in English and Philosophy

Website: http://www.cla.purdue.edu/phil%2Dlit/graduate/

 

Program Description: The English and Philosophy Ph.D. program encourages the interplay between philosophy and literature currently animating discussions in such areas as social and critical theory, feminism, hermeneutics, narrative, semiotics, psychoanalysis, aesthetics, African-American studies, and cultural studies.  In consultation with faculty, each student designs a plan of study to accommodate specific goals and interests.  The program seeks to foster critical and independent thought while providing cohesive professional training.

 

 

Rice University - Houston, TX. M.A. and Ph.D. in Philosophy with a Specialization in Bioethics

Website: http://www.bcm.edu/ethics/?PMID=3829

 

Program Description: Following the normal Rice graduate program structure, it consists of (1) taking a number of the graduate courses in bioethics and the comprehensive examination in modern normative ethics (with an additional question in bioethical theory) and of (2) writing a thesis in philosophical bioethics.

 

 

Stanford University – Stanford, CA. M.A. and Ph.D. in History and Philosophy of Science and Technology

Website: http://www.stanford.edu/dept/HPS/

 

Program Description: The Program in History and Philosophy of Science and Technology (HPST) offers graduate degrees at the doctoral level through the departments of History and Philosophy, as well as at the master's level through a variety of affiliated department and programs, principally Classics, Cultural and Social Anthropology, English, and Modern Thought and Literature. Its courses span the period from antiquity to the late 20th century, with special emphasis on ancient and Islamic science; Renaissance science; the scientific revolution; history of medicine and the body; history and philosophy of biology; history and philosophy of modern physics; history of the philosophy of science in the modern period; history of computers and information sciences; and gender, science, and technology.              

 

 

SUNY Binghamton – Binghamton, NY. M.A. and Ph.D. in Philosophy, Interpretation, and Culture

Website: http://pic.binghamton.edu/

 

Program Description: Binghamton University's interdisciplinary studies in Philosophy, Interpretation, and Culture address the ways in which cultural forms of knowledge and expression shape and are shaped by human practices and experience. Of particular importance are recent developments in history, theory, and practice that promise to stretch the boundaries of philosophy and transform the discipline and the university: post-critical continental philosophy; coloniality critique, postcolonial theory, and philosophy of colonialism; feminist philosophy; gay, lesbian, and queer studies; multicultural studies and critical race theory; critical social theory; and cultural critique, including aesthetic, representational, and ecological practices.

 

 

University of California Berkeley – Berkeley, CA. Ph.D. in Logic and the Methodology of Science

Website: http://logic.berkeley.edu/

 

Program Description: "Methodology of science" is here understood to mean primarily deductive "metascience"--a study which takes sciences themselves, their structures and methods, as its subject matter and which is carried out by logical and mathematical means. Students in this program acquire a good understanding of the mathematical theory known as mathematical logic, which deals in a rigorous way with such central concepts as truth, definability, provability, and computability. They may then seek to contribute to this theory or to apply it. There are important areas of application in Mathematics, Philosophy, Computer Science, and elsewhere.

 

 

University of California Berkeley – Berkeley, CA. Ph.D. in Rhetoric

Website: http://rhetoric.berkeley.edu/graduate.html

 

Program Description: The Department of Rhetoric at the University of California at Berkeley is a center for interdisciplinary research and teaching in the humanities and social sciences. Linked by a common interest in the functions of discourse in all its forms, faculty and students engage the theoretical, historical, and cultural dimensions of interpretation and criticism, in fields as diverse as political theory, gender, law, media studies, philosophy, and literature. The Department is also committed to the study of rhetorical traditions, from the classical era to contemporary rhetorical theory. The Department of Rhetoric encourages applications from students who want to pursue interdisciplinary research in the humanities and the social sciences. Our diverse faculty work on a wide range of topics and with various theoretical approaches, yet we have particular strengths in the following concentrated areas of study: Classical Rhetoric and Ancient Culture, Continental Philosophy and Critical Theory, Film and Media Studies, Gender and Sexuality, History and Theory, Law, Literary and Cultural Studies, Political and Social Thought, Race and Ethnicity. We are particularly interested in people who want to work critically within (and between) constituted disciplines.

 

 

University of California Santa Cruz – Santa Cruz, CA. Ph.D. in History of Consciousness

Website: http://humwww.ucsc.edu/HistCon/HisCon.html

 

Program Description: History of consciousness is an interdisciplinary graduate program centered in the humanities with links to the social sciences, natural sciences, and the arts. It is concerned with forms of human expression and social action as they are manifested in specific historical, cultural, and political contexts. The program stresses flexibility and originality. Interest is focused on problems rather than disciplines. Although students are prepared to teach in particular fields, the emphasis is on questions that span a number of different approaches.

 

 

University of North Texas – Denton, TX. M.A. and Ph.D. in Philosophy with a Concentration in Environmental Ethics

Website: http://www.unt.edu/pais/grad/gphil.htm

 

Program Description: The Department of Philosophy and Religion Studies offers unique graduate and postdoctoral opportunities for study and research in environmental ethics. It is a leading program, nationally and internationally. With two options available for study in environmental ethics, the university can meet the needs of virtually all potential students pursuing academic or nonacademic career objectives.

 

 

University of Texas at Dallas – Dallas, TX. M.A. and Ph.D. in Humanities

Website: http://www.ah.utdallas.edu/graduate/humanities.html

Program Description: The program is designed to provide students with a flexible, interdisciplinary context within which to pursue their studies, built on connections among specific courses and the three principle areas of concentration. Within the specific degree plans, each student plans an individual program of studies in consultation with an assigned faculty advisor. . . . Most courses are offered within the three main areas of concentration: Aesthetic Studies (HUAS) which concentrates on the visual and performing arts, creative writing, art history, and film studies; History of Ideas (HUHI) which concentrates on history and philosophy; and Studies in Literature (HUSL) which concentrates on literature, linguistics, and rhetoric.

 

 

Washington University – St. Louis, MO. Ph.D. in Philosophy with a Track in Philosophy-Neuroscience-Psychology

Website: http://artsci.wustl.edu/~pnp/graduateProgram/index.html

 

Program Description: At the graduate level, PNP sponsors a Ph.D. track within the Ph.D. program in the Department of Philosophy. Students in the program complete the usual requirements for a philosophy Ph.D. plus 16 hours of course work in cognitive neuroscience an/or psychology. PNP students are able to tailor their emphases within neuroscience or psychology to fit with their backgrounds and interests

 

 

For More Information on Interdisciplinary Programs See The Association for Integrative Studies Website: http://www.units.muohio.edu/aisorg/phd/graddirectoryintro.html

 

 


GRADUATE SCHOOL ALTERNATIVES

EARN A JOINT DEGREE IN LAW AND PHILOSOPHY

 

COMBINED LAW AND PHILOSOPHY DEGREE PROGRAMS

 

 

 

Boston University – Boston, MA. M.A./J.D. and Ph.D./J.D. http://www.bu.edu/law/central/jd/programs/dual/philosophy/index.html 

 

 

Cornell University – Ithaca, NY. M.A./J.D. and Ph.D./J.D. https://support.law.cornell.edu/students/forms/view_JD-PH.D._or_MA_in_Phil.pdf

 

 

Duke University – Durham, NC. M.A./J.D. and Ph.D./J.D. http://philosophy.duke.edu/program/joint.php

 

 

Georgetown University – Washington, DC. M.A./J.D. and Ph.D./J.D. http://www.law.georgetown.edu/joint_degree/jdphil.html

 

 

Indiana University School of Law – Indianapolis, IN. M.A./J.D. http://indylaw.indiana.edu/courses/jointdeg.htm

 

 

New York University – New York, NY. M.A./J.D. and Ph.D./J.D. http://www.nyu.edu/gsas/dept/philo/programs/jointlaw.html

 

 

Syracuse University. M.A./J.D. and Ph.D./J.D. http://philosophy.syr.edu/GradJointDegree.htm

 

 

The University of Arizona - Tucson, AZ. J.D./Ph.D. http://www.law.arizona.edu/academics/dualdegree.cfm

 

 

University of Pennsylvania – Philadelphia, PA. M.A./J.D. and Ph.D./J.D. http://www.phil.upenn.edu/graduate/brochure.html#jd
 

 

The University of Texas at Austin – Austin, TX. Ph.D./J.D. http://www.utexas.edu/law/academics/centers/philosophy

 

 

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