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About the Program
The
Department of Philosophy is growing and philosophically vibrant. In
the last few years, we made three senior appointments: Colin McGinn
(who began in January, 2006), Otávio Bueno, and Mark Rowlands (both
of whom began in academic year 2006-7). We have also recently made three
junior appointments: Elijah Chudnoff (Ph.D., Harvard University;
epistemology, and philosophy of mind), Bradford Cokelet (Ph.D.,
Northwestern University; ethics, moral psychology, and history of
ethics), and Nicholas Stang (Ph.D., Princeton University; Kant,
Analytic Metaphysics, and Early Modern Philosophy). Over the
coming years, the department will also be making additional hires.
The department’s areas of specialization are in epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of mind, ethics, and philosophy
of logic. It also has particular strengths in philosophy of
art, pragmatism, philosophy of
science, and philosophy of education.
In particular, the graduate program
has special strength in the area of virtue ethics. Both Michael
Slote and Brad Cokelet direct graduate students working in virtue
theory or on related topics like care ethics, feminist ethics, and
ethical rationalism vs. sentimentalism.
We are dedicated to offering graduate students close personal
attention and professional mentoring, along with intensive
philosophical training. About 25 students are currently enrolled in
the program, a relatively small size that facilitates contact
between the students and the faculty and ensures that graduate
students are an integral part of department life.
The Department offers a program of graduate study leading to the
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees. Students who enter without the
M.A. and who fulfill the relevant requirements are awarded the M.A.
degree as they work towards the Ph.D., but we have no stand alone
M.A. program. The
Ph.D. program is specifically designed to prepare
students for careers as professional teachers and researchers in
philosophy, not only by way of coursework and research supervision,
but also through professional mentoring and opportunities for
philosophical development both inside and outside the classroom.
Each entering student is assigned a mentor from among the faculty,
and faculty members lead professional development seminars on such
topics as teaching, preparing work for publication, and preparing
for the job market.
The Department prides itself on providing a friendly and congenial
atmosphere for doing philosophy, with opportunities for informal
interaction among students and faculty at events like the graduate
student conferences, colloquia and post-colloquium dinners, and
meeting of the Miami Forum. |
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