Master of Arts in Philosophy

The Philosophy department of The New School for Social Research has inherited a legacy of critical thinking and public social and political engagement from thinkers such as Hannah Arendt, Hans Jonas, and Agnes Heller and is rooted in the belief that philosophy reaches beyond academia. Our faculty and alumni are as likely to be found writing in the pages of the New York Times or protesting in the streets as they are publishing in academic journals or lecturing at Oxford and Frankfurt.
Our graduate degree programs in Philosophy are designed to be more creative and flexible than traditional programs. Founded on a fierce commitment to intellectual freedom, our vibrant intellectual community is a place where divisions between Continental and Analytic and philosophy and politics, anthropology, literature, and classics become obsolete.

The graduate curriculum centers on a mix of problems-based and historically oriented courses. Areas of particular strength for our faculty include ancient philosophy, critical theory, existentialism, German idealism, feminist thought, French structuralism, phenomenology, post-Analytic philosophy, pragmatism, psychoanalysis, social and political philosophy, and philosophies of art, language, mind, and nature.

Within the Philosophy department, MA and PhD students can study ancient Greek, Marxist critiques of capitalism, emerging scientific discoveries in artificial intelligence, and animal ethics and politics or spend a semester or year focusing deeply on a single classic philosophical text such as Kant's Critique of Pure Reason or Spinoza's Ethics. Students and faculty also develop independent studies on topics ranging from philosophical anthropology, philosophy of trust, and narrative to Leibniz, Hume, and Aristotle.
The MA in Philosophy is a 30-credit program providing students with advanced training in the history of philosophy and in central areas of current philosophical inquiry. The program offers an optional specialized minor in Psychoanalysis.

Graduate degree applicants must hold a bachelor's degree from an accredited U.S. college or university or the equivalent degree from a foreign college or university. Applicants who will have completed their bachelor's degree by the time of enrollment may apply for admission. PhD applicants in Economics, Philosophy, Politics, and Sociology must hold a master's degree from an accredited U.S. college or university or the equivalent degree from a foreign college or university.
Submit Required Essays
Please describe the academic and intellectual interests, progress, and achievements that have contributed to your decision to apply for graduate study. You should include a thoughtful description of your tentative plan of study or area of inquiry at The New School for Social Research as you now envision it, the kind of research questions you intend to pursue, and what you hope or expect to do after you've completed the degree. (500750-word limit)
Submit Your R'sum or CV
Submit a one to two-page r'sum/curriculum vitae summarizing your academic qualifications, relevant work experience, published writing, volunteer/community work, professional networking, public speaking, and/or any other relevant experiences that may relate to your field of study, including dates and positions held. Please also note any special language or computer skills that you have.
Submit Two Letters of Recommendation
Two letters of recommendation from professional and/or academic references are required. Recommendations must be submitted by recommenders directly via the online application portal. Instructions are included in the online application.
Submit College Transcripts
Applicants must upload an unofficial transcript, mark sheet, or academic record for each institution (even if you didnt receive a degree) in the Academic History section of the online application.

All uploaded transcripts must be accompanied by a key, a legend, or the back copy of the transcript. Non-English transcripts must be accompanied by an English translation. Records from non-U.S. institutions must have grades or marks and contain a copy of diploma if the degree has been conferred. Make sure your name appears on the transcript/record. Scanned documents must be clear and legible.
Minimum required scores are:

TOEFL iBT 100
IELTS 7.5