Note: Students admitted to MAPH for the 2013-2014 academic year need to submit their decision by April 30, 2013.
MAPH students share in an intensive and densely collaborative intellectual project that is an undertaking of the entire Humanities Division of the University of Chicago.
MAPH Admissions decisions are made by the Co-Directors working with a small committee of Divisional graduate faculty in consultation with the Humanities Division's specialized doctoral admissions committees. The most important aspects of a MAPH application are the applicant's writing sample and statement of purpose. The statement should give us a clear idea of what the applicant hopes to gain from a year of rigorous humanistic graduate work. We use the writing sample in order to ensure that an applicant will be ready to enter graduate courses at the University of Chicago immediately upon arriving. We read letters of recommendation in order to get faculty assessments of an applicant's promise. We study academic transcripts in order to assess an applicant's preparation in humanistic coursework. We also pay some attention to GREs.
We are not able to consider individuals for admission who already hold an MA in a humanistic discipline. However, we are able to consider holders of MA's in non-humanistic fields, and MFA's.
Each year, we consider 900-1000 applications with an eye toward composing an entering cohort of 110-130 students. MAPH cannot accommodate all admissible students. We admit with an eye toward building a strong community of MA students with widely varying academic and professional interests, an unusual mix of life experience, seriousness, and significant academic promise, dedication, and talent. The community is important. MAPH is fast-paced and difficult. We look for students who will thrive here and who are open to transformative intellectual experiences.
An application to MAPH must include:
- A completed University application, available online
- Statement of purpose, one to two pages in length
- Sample of critical writing, ten to fifteen pages in length
- Graduate Record Examination (GRE) verbal, quantitative and writing scores
- One transcript from each educational institution beyond high school
- Three letters of recommendation preferably submitted online or in signed, sealed envelopes
- Applicants to the Writing Option must submit a creative writing sample relevant to the proposed focus of study in addition to the critical writing sample
- Applicants to the Classics Option must submit a list of all Greek and Latin texts that they have read in the original, as well as all such texts they plan to read before matriculation
- TOEFL scores, where applicable
- Application fee (this fee is waived for University of Chicago alumni)
The University of Chicago GRE & TOEFL institution code is 1832.
For full details about admission and the online application, please see Humanities Division Admissions.
Applicants who wish to be considered for admission and university-sponsored fellowships should fill out the online admission application to be submitted no later than the deadline (December 15, unless the 15th is a weekend, in which case the deadline is the following Monday).
Admissions decisions are released in mid-March.
Additional information about the admissions process and current applications is available at the Humanities Admissions FAQ page.
Financial assistance:
A limited number of merit-based half-tuition fellowships are offered to MAPH students. As a matter of general University policy, no first-year graduate students are permitted to serve as teaching assistants. Most of our students finance themselves with loans, savings, and part-time work. You may also apply for outside fellowships. We recommend you review the fellowship databases maintained by the office of Graduate Student Affairs. MAPH students are eligible to apply for student loans and work-study; for more information please consult the Student Loan Administration and Student Employment.
International Students:
International students may have a more difficult time funding their studies in MAPH because of their ineligibility for federal loans. For more information about requirements for international students, please contact the Office of International Affairs at 773-702-7752 (fax 773-702-3058) or visit OIA's website.