In our newest “how can we help you?” thread, a prospective graduate student asks:

I’d appreciate some advice about applying to grad school. My main interest is epistemology. It seems like I could find good supervisors in both general and HPS departments. But I’m wondering whether getting an HPS PhD can be limiting further down the road – Do general departments prefer general philosophy PhDs in hiring? And if my interests were to change, say to philosophy of language or ethics, for example, would it be particularly difficult to get a job in these AOS with an HPS PhD? Also, I’d be grateful for comments on any other relevant considerations.

Good questions! Another reader submitted the following reply:

Epistemology and philosophy of science are two distinct specialties. Of course, from the outside they look similar. But after graduate school you are either qualified for epistemology positions or philosophy of science positions – not both. And it is a mistake to think of epistemology as “broader” than philosophy of science. I went to PhD program that is highly rank for phil sci, and not much else. I initially went on the market saying I do “epistemology”. That went nowhere. Any job I got I got because of the philosophy of science training they assumed I got at my ranked PhD program.

Interesting reply. Do any readers have any other helpful tips or advice to share? It would be great, in particular, to hear from HPS PhDs on whether their experience is that it has been limiting in any way, making it more difficult to get a job.

Originally appeared on The Philosophers’ Cocoon Read More