Thank you all for your responses.
To get into a top PhD program in any field, you will need 3 very supportive letters of recommendation from 3 faculty mentors, preferably senior faculty. It will be best if you earned a solid "A" in all of their classes––even better if you were clearly the top student in each class.
Go to those three faculty and ask them the question in your thread title. If all three of them nearly leap out of their chairs with enthusiasm in response, then you've got someone to start to discuss all this with. If you don't get that response, then the law track may simply be a more realistic choice for you. Certainly your prospects of getting a job and earning enough money to live comfortably will be better.
And as with any major life decision, research always helps. Like, here, for instance.
Ah LORs, of course. I imagine securing three LORs won't be an issue. I can even get a (hopefully strong) letter from a professor of mine very well-known in his field, which is my field of interest. I have discussed pursing PhDs with several of my profs - short of asking for a letter - and the reactions have been positive.
You'll read a lot in graduate school. That's what they're there for - to turn you into a philosopher. You're not supposed to be one before you go.
Don't freak out. Practice managing your time. (The Now Habit is a pretty good book, but there are others.) Send in a really good writing sample and have kick-butt recommendations. And just keep reading.
Are you recommending the book from personal experience? If so, did it help you out? It's cheap (
http://www.amazon.com/Now-Habit-Overcoming-Procrastination-Guilt-Free/dp/1585425524/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247202477&sr=8-1), so I might as well give it a read. Thanks.
You'll read a lot in graduate school. That's what they're there for - to turn you into a philosopher. You're not supposed to be one before you go.
Don't freak out. Practice managing your time. (The Now Habit is a pretty good book, but there are others.) Send in a really good writing sample and have kick-butt recommendations. And just keep reading.
I agree. You can't yet know all you will eventually learn about the field. Passion is key and you seem to have it. The fora would be remiss to not remind you of the dismal job market in academia (esp. the humanities, even legal philosophy). As for your study/reading habits - you won't be able to coast as much in grad school so be prepared for that shock. It's possible to sometimes get away with not reading absolutely everything assigned, but making a regular habit of that will get you exposed pretty quickly in a graduate seminar.
As for procrastination, everyone does it. Getting things done is what is important. It would be great is we could all work diligently and efficiently without ever wasting time, but that ain't how it works. If you said you had a series of unfinished papers (rather than admitting to pulling several all-nighters), you should be more worried. But if it wasn't for the last minute, nothing in academia would ever get done.
It's nice to see my passion seeped through my rather apprehensive post. What you said about how much one should know is reassuring. And, anyways, the admission council will only be able to judge me (mainly) on my writing sample. No doubt I will have it read by philosophers at my school; but, for now, I wonder what level of knowledge of the field and the related literature a writing sample should show...
Your words on the procrastination issue are also reassuring. And of course, academics are quite notorious for their lack of punctuality and distaste for deadlines, am I wrong?
The people to ask are your philosophy teachers. If they encourage you, go ahead.
Then take a look at the technical requirements. If you are not comfortable with mathematical logic and foreign languages, your options will be severely limited.
You're absolutely right. It's summer and here I am with no immediate access to my professors. As I mentioned above, I have spoke to them, here and there, and received favourable reactions. But I will approach them more seriously once classes resume.
As for the technical requirements, I'm sure I'll be able to manage at a sufficient level. But from what I gather, my field of interest requires neither logic nor another language.
If you have other options or can see yourself doing something else, don't do it. The academic market is terrible and there are relatively few options outside academia (medical ethics being one of the few).
Moreover, you don't know if and where you will be accepted in terms of law school. Are you only applying to those that have Ph.D. programs in philosophy? Do you want to limit yourself to just those institutions? And there is no assurance that if you get in one program you can get in another.
I would suggest that if you want a legal education, pursue that line first. Get into law school. See how well you do there. Then see if you are still burning to add philosophy to your plate. I suspect you won't.
I am indeed only applying to those philosophy programs that offer a combined JD/PhD. I'm more than confident that I'll get into law school, so my thinking is that I will re-apply for the PhD in my first year of law. And there is no assurance. I agree completely. At worst, I can pursue a PhD after graduating from law school.
I should point out that, oddly enough, in my immediate goals law school takes priority over a PhD in philosophy. But as a career, I don't want to imagine solely practicing law. So as a long term goal, graduate work in philosophy is definitely my top objective.
1. No, you don't need to be well-read throughout philosophy to get into grad school; nor would that be possible. However, your writing sample should show in-depth and preferably current knowledge of some particular sub-field or debate. If you don't yet have a writing sample that exhibits these qualities, I would recommend getting to work on one with the remainder of the summer (perhaps on a topic you could finish up in one of your courses next semester.) The writing sample is the most important part of your application. If you've got the natural ability you should be able to do well on the GRE without studying for too long.
2. You may be in for a lot of pain if you're a procrastinator, but it is possible to get better about this. Obviously this just depends on you, and the only way to find out is by trying. But make sure to get good financial aid so that if after a year or two it doesn't pan out you aren't saddled with a bunch of loans.
3. A previous poster emphasized the importance of forgeign languages/logic. Actually, most top philosophy phd programs in the US and Canada don't have a forgeign language requirement, and the logic requirement is usually just one class at the intermediate/advanced level. So I wouldn't necessarily sweat this too much.
4. If you want to do a JD/PhD, great, but it sounds like you've got a ways to go in terms of the application process. Bear in mind that there's nothing wrong with taking a year off, especially if this would help you do significantly better on the GRE, LSAT, and writing sample. A little time in the working world might also give you the perspective to better appreciate grad school. Someone suggested just starting law school and then maybe circling back to philosophy later if you feel like it. This would perhaps be good advice if you weren't sure whether you wanted to study philosophy; but given that you are seemingly sure about this, it makes sense to begin the JD/PhD straightaway if possible. Law school per se is not a particularly good entree to legal philosophy.
Thank you so much for this. This was indeed the most helpful post.
1. Thanks for stressing the importance of the writing sample. This gives me a plan of action. I'll certainly get started on the writing more seriously now. I've already been reading a number of books this summer exactly for this purpose.
2. Sound advice. I think at least a minor factor in my procrastination has been my 'academic immaturity' (for lack of a better term). The more involved and submerged I get in serious philosophy, the more efficient I become. This is not to say 'get me in a PhD program and problem solved!'; I simply think there's room for hope (especially once I practice the 'now habit' ;) ).
3. Also, as I said, I don't believe my field of interest is big on either.
4. I've thought about taking a year off. But something about a year of uncertainty (what would I do? More courses? It costs! Find a job? Easier said than done! Not to mention the fact that I'd have to start repaying my loans - though they're not a lot) doesn't sit well with me. Nevertheless, perhaps I will delay my PhD application to next year. But I'm certainly applying to law school. I want to remain hopeful though that I can pull of getting in to a combined program... But as far as I can see (I'm not going to say that I can't change on this; I just highly doubt it), I am sure that I want to do philosophy.
I am trying to imagine circumstances in which going to grad school in philosophy would be a good idea. I am failing.
In pondering this matter, readiness for grad school is not a factor whatsoever. If you did well enough as an undergrad to get the three glowing references necessary for admission to a competitive PhD program (and if you didn't, why are we even talking about this?) then you are ready enough intellectually. But that is a very different question than whether it would be a good idea.
The best advice for anyone going into their senior year of college is, don't go to grad school. Not yet. Do something else for a while and spend time figuring out what you want your life to be like. If you do that and the answer comes back screaming, "PHILOSOPHY! PHILOSOPHY!" then I suppose going to grad school wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. Still not a smart move, but at least understandable.
Above all else, do not get a PhD in philosophy with the expectation that there will be an academic job waiting for you at the end. Any job, anywhere, ever. If you do get a job, that's terrific: it has been known to happen, on rare occasion. But it's certainly not something to count on.
I encounter this type of pessimism about the academic job market quite a lot on the net. But when I share this worry with professors, I'm told that 'if you're good, you don't need to worry' - giving me the impression that perhaps this is an inflated worry.
Now, of course, I'm not that naive. I'm sure there's truth to views like yours; but I figure, ultimately, if I manage to graduate from both law and graduate school, chances are I won't be starving. In short, for better or worse, job placement is not even on the list of my concerns. I just want get my foot into academic philosophy for now.
I am curious, though, why would you tell a college senior to forget about grad school? Are you speaking from an economic/financial point of view? What about the intrinsic worth of knowledge? :p
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One other issue: There is a philosopher at my school with a stellar international reputation in my area of interest. I would love to study under him (and my school's job placement record is quite good). But my concerns are 1) pursuing graduate work at one's undergraduate institution is not favourably seen; and 2) my school doesn't have a PhD/JD program, which means no law school for me. Any suggestions?
