The application fees range between $50 to $55 (See Graduate Admissions). If these fees would prevent you from applying and you would like to be considered for one of a limited number of fee waivers, please contact the Graduate Chair, Dr. Jeremy Morris by emailing morrisj6@ohio.edu before applying.
Philosophy (M.A.)
Philosophy (M.A.)
Ohio University's Philosophy Department welcomes students with a broad range of interests and backgrounds and offers a program leading to a Master of Arts in Philosophy. Students get a strong grounding in various fields of philosophy and write a master’s thesis.
The department admits four to six students into the M.A. program each year. Small cohorts allow students to have substantial personal interaction with the faculty. This is a full-time program, and the normal time to completion is two academic years.
Graduate students have the opportunity to study recent work of leading philosophers through the annual Philosophy Forum. Every spring term, graduate students take a seminar on the recent work of the year’s Forum speaker, and later in the term, the students meet the speaker for three days, attending a public lecture and three intensive seminars led by the speaker.
Program Mission
The M.A. program in philosophy is designed to assist those with undergraduate training in philosophy in beginning the transition to becoming professionals in the field. The program aims to produce promising candidates for either a) doctoral programs in philosophy or b) careers in which professional philosophical skills are valued.
Program Learning Objectives
The M.A. program is designed to ensure that candidates for the degree will have an opportunity to develop:
- A historical perspective on the discipline
- An understanding of many of the current issues in several key subfields
- The skills associated with critical thinking, writing, and reading
- The ability to conduct original research in philosophy
Admission Requirements
Complete applications must be received by the department by March 1 to receive full consideration for fall admission with departmental financial aid. All graduate applications, along with official transcripts, GRE score and application materials must be submitted electronically through the Graduate College.
See more information about Ohio University's graduate admission requirements.
Requirements & Application Materials
- Applications, along with official transcripts, should be submitted to Graduate College.
- A bachelor's degree with minimum grade point average (GPA) 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale).
- Core undergraduate coursework: It is expected that students have taken at least 21 semester hours in philosophy. Students who have not had a course each in value theory, symbolic (predicate) logic, ancient philosophy, and modern philosophy must take courses in these areas during the first year in residence or as soon as possible.
- Three letters of reference. These letters should both address your past performance and assess your potential for success at graduate study in philosophy.
- A sample of original philosophical writing should be submitted with the application.
- A statement of purpose.
English Proficiency Requirement
Please review information about Ohio University's minimum English Language Proficiency requirements for graduate study.
-
Tuition & Fees
Tuition and fees are assessed based on the number of credit hours of enrollment, Ohio residency and program.
Financial Aid & Scholarship Information
The Philosophy M.A. program offers competitive tuition scholarships and graduate assistantships on the basis of merit, including previous academic performance and/or post-graduation professional experience.
Applicants who wish to be considered for financial aid should complete the financial aid section on the graduate application. Graduate Assistantship (GA), Teaching Assistantships (TA) and Graduate Recruitment Scholarship (GRS) awards are granted for one year, with renewal contingent upon satisfactory performance in academic and service obligations.
For full consideration for financial assistance, a completed application and all supporting documents must be received by March 1. Later applications will be considered, but decisions will be contingent upon availability. Admission to the program is a prerequisite for all awards.
Philosophy Scholarships & Financial Assistance
More About Financial Aid & Scholarships
International Students
This program permits full-time enrollment in residence at Ohio University, and an I-20 may be issued based on admission to this program. International students can include financial aid awards to meet the estimated expenses on the Financial Support form.
Curriculum
The philosophy M.A. program prepares students to pursue Ph.D. programs or careers that value critical thinking, logic and reasoning skills, and writing and speaking skills are valued. Throughout the two-year program, students work closely with faculty meet program learning objectives.
Learn more about the program and view all course information on the official Academic Catalog.
Graduate Student Research
Philosophy graduate students have the opportunity to complete research with support from faculty on a wide array of topics and interests. Students' thesis research extends past faculty research areas, further enriching the department.
Career Opportunities
OHIO's M.A. program in philosophy provides students with the foundation for doctoral studies in philosophy or other careers — such as law — where critical reasoning, writing, reading and speaking skills are prized.
Many program graduates have received placement in philosophy Ph.D. programs. However, not all students seek placement into philosophy Ph.D. programs. One recent student went into a Ph.D. program in business, and secured jobs as college instructors and professional writers.
Regardless of your career plan, you can expect extensive support from faculty. For specific data on recent placements in Ph.D. programs, please email the Graduate Chair in Philosophy, Dr. Jeremy Morris.
Recent Ph.D. Placements
The program recently placed students into the following Ph.D. programs in philosophy:
- Bowling Green State University
- Florida State University
- Indiana University Bloomington (HPS)
- Johns Hopkins University
- Ohio State University
- Purdue University
- Saint Louis University
- Tulane University
- University of California, Irvine
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- University of Iowa
- University of Kentucky
- University of Missouri
- University of Rochester
- University of Utah
-
Contact Us
If you have questions or would like more information about studying philosophy at OHIO, please contact the department by emailing philosophy.department@ohio.edu.