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The M.A. in Philosophy

UM - St. Louis began offering an M.A. in philosophy in Jan. 2000. We currently have 30 active graduate student, and UMSL Philosophy graduates are in Ph.D. programs at:

  • University of Arizona (2)
  • Boston University
  • University of California at Santa Cruz
  • University of Illinois-Carbondale
  • The Ohio State University
  • University of Pennsylvania
  • SUNY-Buffalo
  • Temple University
  • Washington University

An M.A. in philosophy from UM - St. Louis can serve as preparation for more advanced graduate study in the field. It can also be pursued for personal enrichment or career enhancement. We are happy to work with students who did not major in philosophy as undergraduates. For more detailed information of the program, please see the Philosophy Graduate Student Handbook

  1. Benefits of a M.A. in Philosophy
All people by nature have a desire to know. So perhaps the most compelling reason to study philosophy is to engage your curiosity and enrich your life. But earning an M.A. in philosophy also provides students with a range of skills and a breadth of knowledge that can be put to use in a number of professional fields:
  • Students with strong preparation in philosophy do extremely well on LSATs, GMATs, and GREs.
  • The critical and analytical skills developed in philosophical studies are a benefit in making business decisions, and a significant number of leading executives have a background in philosophy.
  • The growing field of applied ethics has created an opportunity for philosophers to work with professionals in the areas of medicine, engineering, and environmental management.
  • Teachers in secondary schools find that an understanding of philosophical issues in areas such as history, literature, and the sciences allows them to teach their subjects with more insight and to develop new pedagogical approaches.
  • Community colleges generally recruit their philosophy faculty from those who have earned M.A. degrees.
  • The leading guide to graduate study in philosophy -- The Philosophical Gourmet -- suggests that some students who plan to pursue a Ph.D. and seek an academic career in a college or university may also benefit from first graduating from a strong M.A. program:
Who should consider an M.A. program in philosophy? Three categories of students who ultimately want to get a Ph.D. and pursue an academic career might benefit from such programs: (i) students whose undergraduate major was not philosophy; (ii) students who majored in philosophy at universities with philosophy departments outside the mainstream of the profession; and (iii) students who majored in philosophy, have a solid grounding in the various areas of philosophy, but who studied philosophy at smaller colleges and universities, or at institutions with weak academic reputations …students who fit into one of these categories may be more likely to have trouble getting into Ph.D. programs and may be good candidates to benefit from M.A. programs.
The Philosophical Gourmet goes on to list the following ways a strong M.A. program can serve students in these categories: "A good M.A. program will provide many benefits: it will allow a student to get a basic grounding in philosophy or expand the breadth of her existing knowledge; to develop increased familiarity with current debates in philosophy; to prepare and polish written work in philosophy that will be useful in the applications process for Ph.D. programs; and to get to know some established philosophers who can then provide meaningful letters of recommendation for Ph.D. programs."

The Philosophical Gourmet ranks our terminal M.A. program among the top 7 in the country. Go to: http://www.philosophicalgourmet.com/maprog.asp to see the details.

  1. Degree Requirements: Master of Arts in Philosophy

    2. To earn a M.A. in Philosophy, students must complete at least 36 hours (12 courses) of graduate-level work and pass two comprehensive exams. Students may elect to write a thesis, in which case up to 6 of the 36 hours may be devoted to research and writing. Two-thirds (24 credit hours) of the degree program, including the thesis for students taking that option, must be completed in residence at UM-St. Louis. Students should, if at all possible, take the graduate Proseminar during the first Fall semester in which they are in residence. In addition, the courses taken are subject to two distribution requirements:

    1. At least half the courses must be at the 5000 level.
    2. At least one course (3 credit hours) must be chosen from each of the following four subject areas:

      • Epistemology/Metaphysics
      • History of Philosophy
      • Logic/Philosophy of Science
      • Value Theory (ethics, aesthetics, social and political philosophy, philosophy of law)

    The comprehensive exams are taken in two of these four areas.

  2. The Co-operative Arrangement with St. Louis University

    3. The research interests of the UM - St. Louis Philosophy Department are complemented by those of the department at Saint Louis University, which has strengths in the history of philosophy as well as in philosophy of religion. To enhance students' opportunities for instruction and expertise, the two departments have worked out a cooperative arrangement that permits graduate philosophy students on each campus to take up to four courses at the partner institution. In any given semester, UM-St. Louis graduate students must take at least half of their courses at their home institution; they must also take all of their first semester of graduate study.

  3. The Application Process

    4. The following items are required for M.A. Admissions Application

    • Transcripts of undergraduate study
    • Writing Sample (any excerpt that will showcase the applicant's communicative, analytical, and critical skills)
    • 3 Letters of Recommendation
    • Statement of Intent (explaining the applicant's interest in the program)
    • A copy of the applicant’s GRE scores, although not required, is strongly recommended for M.A. Admissions.

    Applications can be submitted online at http://www.umsl.edu/divisions/graduate/prospective/howtoapply.htm

    Students may commence graduate work at the start of the Fall, Spring, or Summer semesters.

  4. Fees and Financial Aid

    5. Graduate classes are billed at the following rates:

    • $316.40 per credit hour for in-state tuition and fees ($929.20 per course)
    • $732.90 per credit hour for out-of-state tuition and fees ($2,178.70 per course)

      *Note: These are the fees as of Fall 2005

    Graduate students who begin their UMSL careers as out-of-state students do not automatically acquire in-state status after a year's residency. The rules regarding these matters are in force throughout the UM system. For details of this policy, go to the university website: http://www.umsl.edu/services/cashiers/residency.htm.

    All students who are United States citizens are eligible for federal loans, either subsidized or unsubsidized.

  5. Teaching Assistantships

    6. At present, the Department is able to award six TA-ships per year (two per semester) in connection with two telecourses we regularly offer: Philosophy 1090: The Humanities through the Arts and Philosophy 1091: Significant Figures in Philosophy. There is also a precedent for using Philosophy TAs each Winter semester in a Critical Analysis course we teach in the Pierre Laclede Honors College. Finally, when our budget permits, we also employ graduate students as graders for some of our undergraduate classes with high enrollments.

    Graduate students must teach, assist in, or grade for two courses in a semester in order to qualify as .5 FTE (full time employment). With this status comes a $2500 salary plus full tuition remission for up to 9 hours during a regular semester or 6 hours during a summer semester. (Fees are paid by the student.) The Department tries to distribute these limited resources according to appropriate principles of fairness.

    Graduate students who are not Missouri residents can qualify for in-state tuition and fees if they teach, assist in, or grade for courses to make up at least .25 FTE (although they will not receive tuition remission with less than .5 FTE).

  6. Contact Information

    7. Director of Graduate Studies:

    Professor Eric Wiland
    wiland@umsl.edu

    Administrative Associate:

    Nora Hendren
    hendrenn@umsl.edu

  7. The 2+3 Program

    8. For a description of the 2+3 Combined B.A./M.A. Program, see http://www.umsl.edu/~philo/Advising/Graduate_Degree_Programs/2plus3.html.