Announcement for Prospective MA & PhD Applicants

The Philosophy Department of Boğaziçi University accepts applications to its M.A. and PhD programmes once a year, normally in April. Selection of prospective M.A. and PhD students is based on a written examination, academic records and ALES/ GRE score. This year the exam will take place in the last week of June, but please check our webpage in case there is a slight change.

We require a minimum score of ALES AE 55 or GRE (sayısal 149).

English language requirement:

BUEPT or
TOEFL® 550, TWE 4.5 or
TOEFL® (IBT) 79, TWE 22 or
IELTS Academic Score: 6.5, Academic Writing Score: 6.5

Both M.A. and PhD Applicants have to submit a Statement of Purpose in English. In this statement, they have to give information about their academic interest in Philosophy and explain their plan to write a thesis in a certain area of it.

PhD applicants have to submit a sample paper on a topic from the area of Philosophy they intend to specialize in. For M.A. applicants the sample paper is not compulsory, but we do encourage applicants to submit one.

Prospective M.A. students can be graduates from other disciplines and not expected to have a strong background in philosophy. They are asked questions aimed at evaluating their analytic skills, clarity of thinking, and ability to argue.

The M.A. degree programme normally lasts for two years (4 academic semesters) and the PhD for four years (8 academic semesters). It is not necessary for prospective M.A. students to be Philosophy graduates; However, upon admission, non philosophy graduates have to study for a preliminary year, taking a number of remedial courses.

Both the M.A. and the Ph.D programme combine an initial year of coursework with the writing of a thesis as of the second year of study onwards.

Before applying, we recommend you to explore the academic profile, expertise and research interests of faculty members. This will help you decide whether you would like to work with a specific professor on a specific topic of your interest.

Please keep checking our webpage for updated information concerning deadlines and further announcements.