Brandeis University

Program Information

Degree Offered

Master's in Philosophy

Format: Campus

Program Description:

The Brandeis University one-year master's program in Philosophy provides students with further grounding in philosophy and enables students to apply to a top-ranked PhD program in Philosophy or to advance their chosen career - not only in philosophy, but in politics, law, economics, sociology, and medicine, among others.

Students are part of the philosophical life of Brandeis' renowned philosophy department, which organizes a listserve announcing lectures, conferences, and other events and activities for the large and lively network of Boston-area philosophy professors and students. Substantial tuition scholarships and teaching assistantships are available.

The program offers students a basic grounding in the discipline that ranges across the major areas currently in play in contemporary philosophy. Although the program does not offer separate tracks, students are able to specialize in the particular strengths of our department: metaphysics and epistemology, ethics, social and political philosophy, philosophy of language, logic, philosophy of mind and cognitive science, early modern philosophy, aesthetics, and the philosophy of law.

Explore the Brandeis Advantage from a philosophy student's perspective:

The Boston Community: The Boston area's large and exhilarating network of philosophy students and scholars is linked by a listserv created and run by the Brandeis Philosophy department and includes Harvard, M.I.T., BU, BC, Tufts, Wellesley, and the University of Massachusetts at Boston. Announcements of colloquia, lectures, conferences, and other events and activities in philosophy are regularly exchanged among departments.

High-Quality Training: Brandeis is recognized by the Leiter Report as among the top-ranked philosophy programs in the country.

Mentoring and Career Counseling: Given our philosophy program's small classes, and without a competing Ph.D. program in the department, full attention is given to our Master's students. Each incoming master's degree student is assigned a mentor drawn from the philosophy faculty, who not only supervises their work, but helps plan their best route through the program and gives career advice.

Breadth: Brandeis has a number of strong departments and programs that can be complementary to the study of philosophy. Faculty members from American Studies, English, Near Eastern and Judaic Studies, and Women's and Gender Studies regularly teach courses that are cross-listed with Philosophy.

Placement: The high quality of the Philosophy faculty who hold Ph.Ds. from top programs in the country (including UC Berkeley, Chicago, CUNY, Harvard, NYU, Princeton, Rockefeller, UCLA and the University of Pennsylvania) is an advantage for students who enter the Brandeis program, giving them the opportunity to work with faculty members who are highly regarded within the field, thereby enhancing students' chances of getting into top graduate programs in philosophy.

Department Life: The department runs its own colloquium series with speakers from major philosophy departments around the country, providing M.A. students with the opportunity to keep up with the most recent debates within the field and participate in conversation with philosophers from other universities.

Brandeis' M.A. in philosophy can enhance your credentials and prepare you for applying to leading Ph.D. programs in philosophy.

Accreditation:

New England Association of Schools and Colleges

Tuition & Financial Aid

Financial Aid Offered: Yes

Classification: Doctoral/Research Universities - Extensive

Institution Sector: Private not-for-profit

Locale: Small City

Size & Settings: 5,000 - 9,999