Admissions and Funding

Admission Information

Ph.D. program candidates should normally have a high grade point average and have completed at least 18 credit hours (or the equivalent) of philosophy, including one course in logic, one in ethics, one in epistemology, metaphysics, or philosophy of mind, and two courses in the history of philosophy. 

The applications process for the Ph.D. program is competitive, and only a small number of candidates are admitted. There are no qualifications that will guarantee entry.  

M.A. admission requirements are less stringent than those for admission to the Ph.D. program, although still competitive (again, only a small number are admitted each year). The same supporting documents must be provided.

The Department especially welcomes applications from women and members of minority groups that are under-represented in the profession.

The deadline for applications is January 7 for entry in the following Fall. The department does not normally admit graduate students for entry in Spring.

Financial Aid

The department offers financial aid to most students offered admission ot the PhD program. The package of support will normally involve a mix of Research Assistant or Fellowship positions with Teaching Assistant positions, providing funding for at least five years in the program. It will also include tuition remission and affordable health insurance.

Unfortunately, the Department is unable to waive application fees since these are paid directly to the graduate school.   Consult the graduate school for information about fee waivers.  

Application Details

The following items are normally required of all candidates:

• A completed application form, containing a short 'statement of purpose'. This can be downloaded from the Graduate School website at https://terpengage.force.com/community/CustomLoginPage  or completed online.
• Official transcripts of all degrees obtained or in the process of being obtained.
• Three letters of support from previous instructors.
• TOEFL examination results (for applicants whose first language isn't English)
• Writing sample in philosophy (normally one or two essays, totaling no more than twenty to twenty-five pages).

You have the option to submit your GRE exam results, but this is not required. 

The TOEFL requirement may be waived for students who have, e.g., been educated in English.

All candidates should ensure that we have a reliable email address at which they can be contacted at short notice. Initial offers of admission are likely to be sent out by early to mid-March. We will aim to keep all candidates informed of the status of their application. Please do not hesitate to contact us about the status of your application if you have not heard from us by March 15.

For information and application forms for the Graduate School at the University of Maryland, see:

https://gradschool.umd.edu/admissions

Contact address: Harjit Bhogal, Director of Graduate Admissions, Department of Philosophy, University of Maryland College Park, MD 20742, USA, bhogal@umd.edu..