For AY23–24, the department will award two recruitment scholarships in stipendiary increments of $3,500. These funds are supported by the Equity Scholars Initiative for Graduate Students of the College of Liberal Arts. Promising research-driven students are encouraged to apply—especially those who are also socioeconomically disadvantaged, first-generation, and/or underrepresented students. Applicants interested in the award can contact the Graduate Advisor for more information.

Congratulations to Philosophy MA students Ning Shao & Chavva Olander Lanierzoz, who were recipients of the AY21–22 recruitment funding, and to Esther Sims, Victoria Cinquegrani, and Frank Mendoza, who were AY22–23 recipients.

Eligible graduate students may be awarded the State University Grant, which potentially covers the entire cost of tuition for the MA degree. (This is because the earned unit maximum is 125% of the published unit requirement for the degree, i.e., 30 units.)

Eligibility requirements include enrollment in ≥4 units and CA residency. Students must also have a current FAFSA on file by the priority deadline (normally March 1st of each year) and have an eligible Expected Family Contribution (EFC). For help understanding SUG eligibility, contact the Office of Financial Aid.

The department regularly employs 7–8 Graduate Assistants each semester. GAs are assigned to a particular professor and course for supervision and mentorship, and assist with things like classroom management, grading, and office hours. In AY20–21, GAships paid approximately $3,339–$3,825 per semester for 10 hours/week.

The Department occasionally hires graduate students to provide tutoring support across all sections of GE courses such as PHIL170: Critical Reasoning. Rather than being assigned to a particular section, graduate student tutors run open advising and/or office hours (10 hrs/week) to help students with coursework and test preparation, improving their skills in critical thinking and mastery of basic logical concepts. Tutors are a support resource only, and they are not responsible for grading. Pay for graduate student tutorialships is normally equivalent to that of a regular GAship.

Some students apply for Work/Study programs as part of their Federal financial aid package. Eligibility requires that a FAFSA be filed on or before the priority deadline (normally March 1st of each year). The department routinely hires FWS students during the regular academic year. FWS students are responsible for assistance within the Department of Philosophy Main Office (10–20 hours per week). Questions should be e-mailed to Graduate Advisor, Prof. Max Rosenkrantz and the Department Chairperson, Prof. Nellie Wieland. Application forms can be obtained from Kaz Mogi, Department Coordinator in the Main Office.

Graduate students from programs in the College of Liberal Arts may compete in the annual Graduate Research Fellowship (GRF) competition. Students from Philosophy have often been successful, winning GRFs in, e.g.,

AY21–22 Ryan Lam (Nick Laskowski)
AY20–21 Michael Lara (Charles Wallis)
AY19–20 Avery Amerson (Nellie Wieland)
AY18–19 Christopher George (Nellie Wieland)
AY15–16 Nathan Lackey (Cory Wright)
AY13–14 Emily Barrett (Cory Wright)
AY11–12 Neil Richmond (Charles Wallis)

The competition is announced each winter, with deadlines the following spring. The University typically awards one fellowship per college per year. Fellows are awarded $4,500 each semester. Students must be nominated by a faculty supervisor and eligible to apply. Eligibility requires satisfying the conditions for California residency and meeting criteria for financial aid eligibility (including having filed the FAFSA). Fellows must demonstrate mastery of research methods appropriate to discipline as evidenced in culminating scholarly activity (thesis, project, article, presentation, etc.) as well as timely progress toward degree as evidenced by graduation no later than one academic year following the fellowship year. A final report of work accomplished is due to the Dean of Graduate Studies at the end of the fellowship period. For more information, contact the Graduate Advisor.

The Office of Research and Special Programs offers a competitive program that provides financial support during the summer intersession months to undertake full-time research and scholarly activities in collaboration with a faculty research mentor. Awards are around $6,234 for eight weeks of assistance on collaborative projects between students and faculty mentors. Projects may include editing a volume or collection, literature reviews and other research support, bibliometric study, experimentation, etc. Applications are submitted through Info-Ready Space Competition. For more information, contact the Graduate Advisor.

The Learning Assistance Center (LAC) occasionally hires graduate students in Philosophy to serve as Supplemental Instructors. SIs help a segment of the CSULB undergraduate population ('Beach Learning Community') to fill in gaps in their foundational knowledge and skills, so that they can better handle college-level coursework. SIships involve many of the same duties as GAships in Philosophy, and SIs frequently serve alongside GAs in the very same GE courses. The job is to facilitate learning objectives and to work collaboratively with the instructor to maximize student success among the Beach Learning Community. Interested students should consult the graduate advisor, followed by the appropriate staff member at the LAC for futher details. Further information can be found here.

The department occasionally offers select graduate students the opportunity to teach their own lower-division course as the instructor of record. This opportunity is great experience for teaching at the community-college level and beyond. In AY20–21, TAships paid approximately $4,008–$4,092 per semester.

The College of Liberal Arts occasionally has special projects (e.g., HDVI) and programs (e.g., internship) that involve opportunities for graduate students to apply for extra-departmental assistantships. Additionally, other departments within CLA have occasionally hired Philosophy MA students to assist with other non-philosophy courses. The graduate advisor can provide more information about these and other campus employment possibilities. Further information can be found here.

The Office of Housing and Residential Life (OHRL) has employment opportunities for graduate students who are looking for RAships or for financial assistance for living expenses. See here for further information.

In addition to scholarships offered internally by the department, there are also some university- and system-level opportunities that graduate students may pursue. For instance, the university offers the Sally Casanova Pre-Doctoral scholarship to qualified applicants, and the Chancellor’s Doctoral Incentive Program is another possibility. Previously, HOGAR recruitment scholarships of $4000 were awarded in the Fall semester.

Center for Scholarship Information (CSI)
The Center for Scholarship Information is a centralized campus resource for assistance with scholarship fundraising efforts. CSI collects, organizes, and distributes information on hundreds of external scholarships as well as administer university scholarships for the campus. For additional information, please consult the University’s financial aid page.