You should get a Ph.D. in Philosophy if you consider the material studied in philosophy to be an end in itself. Philosophy is a truthseeking discipline, so if you find that inherently rewarding and could imagine doing that for a large part of your life it’s a good decision. Don’t worry about the wariness of philosophy: I can guarantee you that the criticisms levied here against philosophy have been addressed tenfold in actual philosophy departments, by people with sympathies closer to Luke’s than you’d think.
That said, a lot of people go into graduate programs for bad reasons. Here are two I’ve been tempted by:
#1.
Minimizing Status Risk. A lot of people think about risk in terms of financial gain or loss, but few think about risk in terms of status when it’s a real concern for many people. Graduating college can be intimidating, especially if you’re at a prestigious college, because you’re about to be stripped of your hierarchical standing among people your age. If you’ve attended, say, Harvard for four years, you’ve spent those four years thinking of yourself on the top of the food chain relative to other college students.
Once you’re out of college, this is no longer true, and you’re measured by what kind of job you have. It’s extremely tempting to avoid this by applying to graduate school, because graduate school allows you to continue the imagined hierarchical standing that you’ve had for the past few years. Eventually you’ll get a Ph.D. and be on top of the intellectual food chain. This has nothing to do with “avoiding the real world”, because “the real world” as an employment area is conspicuously centered on office jobs or whatever the majority of people happen to do for money. (I wonder if farmers consider everyone else to have a “fake” job. Probably.)
It’s a way of avoiding vulnerability to your status, because working as a clerk or receptionist or barista or server or whatever after college is generally not prestigious and makes you feel like your intellect isn’t worth anything. That’s an uncomfortable feeling, sure, but make sure you’re not eyeing a Ph.D. just to avoid that feeling.
#2.
Even if you’re not avoiding Status Risk, make sure you’re not getting a Ph.D. just to feel like an intellectual hotshot anyway. A lot of people reason about competence in binary ways (expert or non-expert) even though competence obviously exists on a spectrum, so it’s tempting to get a title that lends you immediately to the “expert” end of any discussion. That way, you can throw your weight around whenever there’s a clash of words.
With philosophy especially, it’s enigmatic to a lot of people. There’s a mystery of what you’re actually learning in an advanced program. So a Ph.D. looks like a “certified smart person” badge to a lot of people, and that’s tempting. Make sure you’re not getting it for that reason either.
Here’s the litmus test. Ask yourself: “would I self-study this material anyway if I had the next three-five years paid for? Would this occupy a large part of my time regardless of what I’m doing?” If so, it’s worth it.
Ask yourself: “would I self-study this material anyway if I had the next three-five years paid for? Would this occupy a large part of my time regardless of what I’m doing?” If so, it’s worth it.
Philosophy makes a good hobby. You can do it anywhere, and no special equipment is required.
Doing it right, of course, likely requires having good mentors who can guide you away from the path to crankdom. Whether these mentors are best found in academic philosophy programs, I am not certain.
You should get a Ph.D. in Philosophy if you consider the material studied in philosophy to be an end in itself. Philosophy is a truthseeking discipline, so if you find that inherently rewarding and could imagine doing that for a large part of your life it’s a good decision. Don’t worry about the wariness of philosophy: I can guarantee you that the criticisms levied here against philosophy have been addressed tenfold in actual philosophy departments, by people with sympathies closer to Luke’s than you’d think.
That said, a lot of people go into graduate programs for bad reasons. Here are two I’ve been tempted by:
#1.
Minimizing Status Risk. A lot of people think about risk in terms of financial gain or loss, but few think about risk in terms of status when it’s a real concern for many people. Graduating college can be intimidating, especially if you’re at a prestigious college, because you’re about to be stripped of your hierarchical standing among people your age. If you’ve attended, say, Harvard for four years, you’ve spent those four years thinking of yourself on the top of the food chain relative to other college students.
Once you’re out of college, this is no longer true, and you’re measured by what kind of job you have. It’s extremely tempting to avoid this by applying to graduate school, because graduate school allows you to continue the imagined hierarchical standing that you’ve had for the past few years. Eventually you’ll get a Ph.D. and be on top of the intellectual food chain. This has nothing to do with “avoiding the real world”, because “the real world” as an employment area is conspicuously centered on office jobs or whatever the majority of people happen to do for money. (I wonder if farmers consider everyone else to have a “fake” job. Probably.)
It’s a way of avoiding vulnerability to your status, because working as a clerk or receptionist or barista or server or whatever after college is generally not prestigious and makes you feel like your intellect isn’t worth anything. That’s an uncomfortable feeling, sure, but make sure you’re not eyeing a Ph.D. just to avoid that feeling.
#2.
Even if you’re not avoiding Status Risk, make sure you’re not getting a Ph.D. just to feel like an intellectual hotshot anyway. A lot of people reason about competence in binary ways (expert or non-expert) even though competence obviously exists on a spectrum, so it’s tempting to get a title that lends you immediately to the “expert” end of any discussion. That way, you can throw your weight around whenever there’s a clash of words.
With philosophy especially, it’s enigmatic to a lot of people. There’s a mystery of what you’re actually learning in an advanced program. So a Ph.D. looks like a “certified smart person” badge to a lot of people, and that’s tempting. Make sure you’re not getting it for that reason either.
Here’s the litmus test. Ask yourself: “would I self-study this material anyway if I had the next three-five years paid for? Would this occupy a large part of my time regardless of what I’m doing?” If so, it’s worth it.
Philosophy makes a good hobby. You can do it anywhere, and no special equipment is required.
Doing it right, of course, likely requires having good mentors who can guide you away from the path to crankdom. Whether these mentors are best found in academic philosophy programs, I am not certain.
Yeah, woodshedding isnt good in philsoophy—it usually results in incomprehensible output. But it is easy to find critics if you want to.
I agree with this. However, I wager that actually wanting to find critics is a nigh-impossible task for the average person.
And it frees you to pursue some other job activity, which, you know, pays your bills.