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.
Like the first reply said, I think of epistemology and HPS as very different subfields--with lots of overlap, sure, but still distinct subfields (similarly, there's a lot of overlap between metaphysics and the philosophy of art, but they're also clearly distinct subfields!). You can certainly apply the one to the other and vice versa, but as far as your market presentation goes, doing the one does not necessarily suffice to make you the other (though in some cases it might; e.g. a focus on the history of science might well satisfy the requirements, whatever they may be, for an early modern specialist).
FWIW, I think an HPS PhD counts for every bit as much as a strictly philosophy PhD. (To be clear, I'm distinguishing here between an HPS PhD and a PhD from a department that's focused on HPS but doesn't label its PhD differently.) And the evidence I count for various specializations and competencies will be the same.
Posted by: Michel | 08/21/2023 at 11:09 AM
I have the sense (but no hard evidence) that being an HPS-er stopped me from being competitive for Open AOS/C positions. Then again, my own research interests (which lean heavily into scientific practice) may better explain this.
In general, I think reaching out to HPS departments for their placement record could be helpful for the OP.
Another factor to consider is how well the HPS folks and the Phil folks get along at a given University. This can influence whether you take Phil classes while earning your PhD as well as who your letter writers might be (to name just two factors). These things matter on the job market.
Posted by: HPS PhD holder with a TT job in a phil dept who was once asked, "why not market yourself as working in epistemology?" | 08/21/2023 at 12:39 PM
I did an MPhil at Cambridge, which has both a philosophy program and an HPS program. At the time, Peter Lipton was in the HPS program, and he ran the epistemology reading group, which was well attended. My main interest was and is epistemology, and my sense was that there was just as much epistemology going on in the HPS program as in the philosophy program.
Just speaking for myself, were my department hiring in epistemology, I wouldn't at all discount applications from students with HPS PhDs, though of course it would depend a lot on the particular research profile.
Posted by: Daniel Greco | 08/21/2023 at 01:12 PM
I think that in Europe, it is probably easier to get a job as a philosopher of science than an someone in epistemology. Some caution is in order here - the group in Munich, for example, who do formal epistemology are REALLY philosophers of science ... in fact some of the best. But philosophers of science seem to have opportunities in Europe that are less common in North America.
Posted by: philsci | 08/21/2023 at 01:41 PM
Worth adding here is just to be careful with thinking all universities with HPS programs and philosophy programs allow for easily working between the two; this is not the case. Ask your local grad student.
Posted by: anon from one of those universities | 08/21/2023 at 03:11 PM