Thinking About Graduate School in Philosophy?

David Brink (UC San Diego) has posted some quite sensible advice on-line that covers the main issues for a prospective grad student.

UPDATE:  A graduate student writes:

One thing I noticed is that Brink claims that having a Ph.D. is necessary for full-time employment at a Community College.  While I do not personally know anyone with only an MA who has a tenure-track job (or the equivalent, as some CC's don't have a tenure system) at a Community College, I often notice that when CC's advertise full-time faculty positions, more often than not, the advertisement says that an MA is required, while a Ph.D. is preferred but not required. For philosophers who are more interested in teaching than researching, I think it would be good to know just how good of a chance there is of someone with only an MA getting a full-time job at a Community College.

Readers:  any insights into this?

Comments

[Preston Werner]

I don't know a lot about the CC system, and I suspect it varies state-to-state; however, I am currently in an MA program and several of the alumni here who opted not to go on are currently teaching at Community Colleges in the area. So its possible that PhDs may only be required for tenure-track CC positions, or maybe not even that.

[Becky Vartabedian]

I know that in Colorado tenured positions at CC's are advertised with a complete MA as required, PhD preferred. Depends on the state and the school, I think, when it comes to filling the position. The lone tenure-track professor at the CC I teach at was recently filled by someone with two terminal MA degrees.

[Dwight Furrow]

I am a tenured CC professor. (with a Ph.D) Ph.Ds are typically not required for teaching at community colleges. However, my sense is that it is becoming more and more difficult to secure a tenured position at community colleges without a Ph.D. This is especially true at community colleges that see their main role as providing transfer opportunities to 4 yr. schools. Community colleges that emphasize vocational training may have a less demanding standard. By contrast, I have heard that some community college administrators have a dim view of Ph.Ds because it is thought that their interest in research may harm their commitment to teaching. I have not encountered such attitudes but I wouldn't be surprised that they exist. I would advise anyone seeking a tenured position to pursue the Ph.D.

[Eric Silverman]

I wouldn't count on landing a CC job with just an MA in philosophy. Having a Ph.D. may not be an official requirement, but in practice I would expect that these jobs typically go to candidates with PhDs or multiple MAs. I did some adjunct work at a CC during grad school and the lone TT philosophy professor had a PhD and years on the job market before landing that job.

Plus, once he got the job it was an incredible amount of work. I think the LEAST he ever taught was five courses a semester (with occassional overloads to six or seven courses a semester when adjuncts were unavailable). Another drawback is that the school only offered four or five philosophy courses, so he had a very limited variety of courses he could teach.

[Manyul Im]

It sounds like this varies from region to region. When I was at Cal State Los Angeles, most M.A. students who had completed our program and done either very well or even only pretty well were able to get non-permanent "gigs" at the numerous area CCs. That's because the need is so high in So Cal. Among those M.A. holding students, a small number were also offered either permanent, tenure-track positions or relatively permanent (subject to annual reviews) contract positions. So, if you are in the right region, you can get by on CC teaching, in terms of pay and relative job security, with only an M.A.

An extra bonus for M.A.s who live in or relocate to California: the California State system (CSU) which has 23 (24?) campuses, also has "contract" lecturer positions, many of which are filled by M.A. holding instructors. My recollection is that this guarantees some number of sections each term to those who have contracts, so long as there are sections available--and usually, the demand is so high in a General Education rich program (e.g. Philosophy, English, Communications, etc.) that one can count on these sections being available.

There's good anecdotal evidence (ask me, for example) that these positions are gained through reputation of M.A. program in its region and quick, word-of-mouth (or email, more frequently: "Do you know any M.A. students who would be able to teach...?") recommendations, so it is not presumptuous to ask about these things when considering an M.A. program, especially in Southern California.

I hope that's helpful. I personally know lots of M.A.s in So Cal who really enjoy the teaching life, without the worries and pressures of research.

[Sabrina Jamil]

I am a tenure track faculty at Miami Dade College with only an M.A. (from Florida State). I received my M.A. in 2006, spent about a year working in college administration at CU Boulder, and took up my current post in August of 2007. Although I am very happy with my job and enjoy teaching at MDC, I will say that the offer was unexpected, given that there are so many Ph.D. struggling to secure jobs. Some of my colleagues at MDC are ABDs, many ar Ph.D.s, but I suspect that I am the only M.A. I think there are about 15-20 full-time philosophy professors college-wide.

It is also worth noting that although my position does not require a Ph.D., pursuing a doctoral degree is "highly encouraged" by the College (and financial support is provided among benefits). Graduate work of some kind is required for tenure and promotions in rank for those who do not have doctorates; promotion to full Professor requires a doctorate. So even though a professor at MDC can be tenured without a Ph.D., they cannot achieve the highest possible rank without it (or without a terminal degree in their field).