Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc)
Pratt Institute
University of Southern California (USC)
Tulane University
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
Temple University
University of Oregon
Cranbrook Academy of Art
New York Institute of Technology (NYIT)
Kansas State University
What do you mean only one application?!?!?!
I wanted to ask if this is the norm...
So, I've been out of work for almost a year now. During my time off, I've decided to go back to school to get a PhD. Before I apply to PhD programs, I feel that I need to bolster my critical reasoning and research skills. To do that I decided to apply to two programs (not to attend concurrently): M.A. in Philosophy (first choice) and a M.A. in Art History (second choice). Both programs are at the same university. My chances of getting accepted to both programs are very good. Chances of getting an assistantship to the philosophy program, questionable. Chances of getting an assistantship to the Art History program, very likely.
So I called the graduate admissions office today to see if I have to submit two sets of transcripts -- one for each program... They tell me it is a standing policy to not allow an applicant to apply to more than one program!!!
I've NEVER heard of such a policy.... By the way, no where on the application nor on the website does it state said policy.
The amount of policies that universities keep hidden or "internal" is pretty immense. Usually they don't tell you until its too late.
Might be a school by school thing...back when I was applying to grad schools I was able to apply to both M Arch programs and M Urban Planning programs. They weren't in the same colleges/schools and were decided upon separately.
I do mean at the same University.
back when i was applying to phd programs in 2002 almost all the schools i applied to said they would NOT accept people who apply to more than one program at the same university. this sort of made sense to me because if you weren't 100% dedicated to what you were proposing on doing then they didn't want you (and you were obviously unsure if you were applying to more than one program). i think it's pretty standard and i definitely remember reading that this was the policy.
I can understand the policy for PhDs because you should really know what you want to research, but this is only at a master's level. I remember when I was at the GSD several of my classmates had applied to the MArch, MAUD, and a few MDes programs in an effort to gain acceptance to at least one.
I suppose the policy is more common than I thought...
well, i think people even take MA programs seriously, too, in terms of content. many people think of them as prep for doing phd programs, so in a sense, an integral part of the process. it IS still academically oriented graduate eduction (as opposed to professional degrees). even if it is a stand-alone MA, i think it's still more in the category of a phd program rather than similar to an MArch/MDes/etc.
I also think schools want to discourage people from applying to a bunch of grad programs at the school. at that point it pretty much seems like people just want harvard, or whatever, on their degree, rather than thinking about what program is right for them.
if applying to more than one program makes a candidate undesirable then it would seem to be to the school's advantage to let you apply to two programs. in that scenario, they could quickly reject both applications while charging two fees.
What are you going to get your ph.d. in? Because a Master degree in philosophy is like a dog turd on a sidewalk.
Better question... without using Merriam Webster or the OED, define what philosophy actually is.
That's probably the hardest exercise of philosophy itself!
Block this user
Are you sure you want to block this user and hide all related comments throughout the site?
Archinect
This is your first comment on Archinect. Your comment will be visible once approved.