Graduate Student Resources

• Philosophy Graduate Student Handbook
• Graduate College Handbook
• Philosophy Graduate Mentoring Guidelines
• Philosophy Guiding Principles (see Graduate Student Experience)
• Many other useful resources can be found at the Graduate College Website.

The Graduate College Student portal is where you complete graduate college petitions, submit prelim/final exam requests, access your degree audit, schedule advising appointments with graduate college staff, and links to other frequently student used forms. Find tutorials on how to use the portal here.

Access the portal

Please complete the Grad Student Conference Scholarship Award Application form if you would like to apply for the Philosophy Department Travel Award Scholarship.  For AY 25/26, Scholarships are limited to a maximum award amount of  $500.00 for attending a conference and $700.00 if presenting, commenting.  Awards are processed once a semester and will be managed by the financial aid office.

Grad Student Conference Scholarship Award Application form

To request an exception to Graduate College rules, you must submit a petition with the Graduate College (any petition you submit will also be reviewed by the department). The Graduate College Handbook explains in detail when a petition is needed. 

When completing a petition please make sure to do the following:

• Clearly state the request.
• Provide a justification of why you (as the student) should be allowed the exception to policy or the deadline.
• Please note that petitions can be approved or not approved by the graduate college.

Learn more and submit a petition

Students need to submit their requests in the graduate college student portal at least three weeks before the exam to make sure the request can be thoroughly reviewed before exam occurs.

• For committee and registration requirements of doctoral exams please follow this link: Exams & Committees | Graduate College
• Doctoral exams can be performed remotely, please see Conducting Exams Remotely | Graduate College for guidelines.
• For deadlines please refer to Graduate College Thesis Deadlines

• Late registration & late course change forms can be submitted in the Graduate College Student Portal
• Request for academic leave of absence form is here: Request for Academic Leave of Absence
• Withdrawal/Cancellation form: UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN OFFICE OF ADMISSIONS AND RECORDS WITHDRAWAL/CANCELLATION FORM (cannot be submitted by student, authorized department signatory is needed)
• Please see Find a Form | Graduate College for more registration requests and information

• Philosophy Publishing Advice
• Publishing Advice for Graduate Students
• On Publishing While in Grad School
• Publishing in “Graduate” Journals?
• Advice about Submitting Manuscripts to Publishers

Job Market Advice

• Document

  Advice for the Philosophy Job Market by Dan Korman.pdf
• Document

  Making the Most of Philosophy Grad School with an Eye to the Job Market by Dan Korman.pdf
• General Philosophy Job Market Advice
• How to Write a Cover Letter for the US Job Market
• How Important is a “Continuous” CV
• Writing Samples in Job Applications: How Long?
• What Is an “Area of Competence” (AOC)?
• How Do Departments Decide Whom to Interview at the APA?
• How Do Departments Evaluate Teaching Credentials?
• What Do Search Committees Think of Interfolio?
• Including Letters of Recommendation from Students in a Dossier?
• Exploring Careers

•  APA Interview Tips
• How to Best Prepare for Job Interviews with a Primary Emphasis on Teaching
• Preparing for Teaching Interviews

Note: Job seekers can find listings for jobs and fellowships in philosophy at PhilJobs. 

• Choosing a Dissertation Supervisor
• Acquiring Substantial Debt While in Grad School: How Much? How Common?

• Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
• PhilPapers
• Google Scholar