Admissions to the MA Program
Complete the Stony Brook on-line application, with the following criteria required for admission to the MA program in philosophy:
A. A bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution;
B. Some knowledge of the history of philosophy and of contemporary modes of thought is highly desirable, but not required; Deficiencies in these areas may require the student to undertake special work;
C. One official transcript of undergraduate record and of any work completed at the graduate level;
D. Letters of recommendation from three previous or current instructors;
E. Statement of Purpose (no more than 2 pages single-spaced);
F. Submission of a philosophical essay (which may be a paper written for a previous course, no more than 30 pages double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman font);
G. A current copy of your curriculum vitae (c.v.).
H. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test scores are waived for this application.
I. TOEFL scores for applicants whose native language is not English; and,
J. Acceptance by both the Department of Philosophy and the Graduate School.
L. A non-refundable $100 application fee. For information on application fee exceptions and the fee waiver request process, please visit this page.
Stony Brook University’s Graduate School requires that all applications are submitted electronically. You can find the Graduate School admissions website here.
The on-line application is interactive. You can create an account, save your information, and return to your application as often as you like. Until you click the Submit button, you can correct the data you have entered. You will be as well able to review the status of your application by logging into your personal On-line Account once you have submitted it.
If you are an international applicant, please familiarize yourself as well with the information provided by the Stony Brook University’s Visa and Immigration Services.
Note that only GRE and TOEFL scores (I) that were officially submitted by ETS will be accepted. Stony Brook University’s code for score reporting for both tests is 2548. The department follows the Graduate School standards setting the acceptable score on the standard TOEFL test for international students at 550 and above, or, a minimum score on the Internet-based TOEFL (IBT) of 90 with a minimum score on each subsection of 22 respectively.
Official transcripts (C) send from your previous academic programs should be addressed to:
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Philosophy
Stony Brook University/SUNY
213 Harriman Hall
Stony Brook, NY 11794-3750
Official electronic transcripts, sent by authorized delivery agents, are also accepted. Please have them emailed to the Graduate Coordinator.
There is no funding available for students in the MA program.
For information on other Financial Aid options contact the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarship Services at (631) 632 6840 or visit www.stonybrook.edu/finaid/.