PhD Placements

MAPSS supports approximately 100 graduates in their applications to funded PhD programs every year, offering a full suite of support, from guidance on where to apply and who to approach for letters of recommendation to close reviews of application materials and advice on negotiating offers. 

Over the course of the past five years, more than 77% of graduates who took advantage of our support were successful in receiving fully funded offers to doctoral programs. We define fully funded offers as tuition plus RA/TAship or stipend for a minimum of 4 years.

2023 PhD Placement:

For the 2023 admission cycle, at least 88 of 120 MAPSS applicants (73%) were successful in securing fully funded doctoral offers. 

 

Applicants received an average of more than 2 fully funded PhD offers each. 

 

12 were accepted at the University of Chicago for PhD study.  

 

By comparison, success rates were 73 of 86 (85%) in 2022, 84 of 104 (81%) in 2021, 105 of 125 (84%) in 2020, 111 of 125 (89%) in 2019, 90 of 103 (87%) in 2018, 69 of 77 (90%) in 2017, 56 of 60 (93%) in 2016, 68 of 75 (91%) in 2015, 66 of 74 (89%) in 2014, 62 of 66 (94%) in 2013, 78 of 92 (85%) in 2012, and 68 of 72 (94%) in 2011. 

By discipline:

  • Anthropology: 18 of 24 supported MAPSS applicants (75%) have funded offers. They include admits at UChicago (2), Columbia, UCLA, UC-Berkeley, Arizona, Rutgers, CU Boulder, UCL, Northwestern, NYU, Pittsburgh, Indiana University, UIC, University of Illinois (UC), Chinese University of Hong Kong, UW Madison, Oxford Stanford.
  • Economics: 10 of 14 supported MAPSS applicants (71%) have funded offers. They include admits at UChicago (2), UConn, Columbia, Brown, UC Davis, USC, UW-Madison.
  • History: 20 of 27 supported MAPSS applicants (74%) have funded offers. They include admits at UChicago (1) Princeton, Johns Hopkins (2), Cornell, University of Illinois, Northwestern (3), Harvard, CUNY (2), Pittsburgh, Rochester, Virginia Tech, Florida State (3), UNC Chapel Hill, SUNY Buffalo.
  • Political Science: 13 of 16 supported MAPSS applicants (81%) have funded offers. They include admits at UChicago (3), UC Irvine, UC Berkeley (2), Washington-Seattle, Princeton (2), Columbia (2), MIT, Brown, UVA, Oxford.
  • Psychology: 5 of 11 supported MAPSS applicants (45%) have funded offers. They include admits at IIT, UNC Chapel Hill, Virginia Tech, UT Dallas, Miami.
  • Sociology: 24 of 30 supported MAPSS applicants (80%) have funded offers.They include admits at UChicago (4), SUNY Albany, LSE, UC Berkeley, UC San Diego (2), Notre Dame, UIC (3), UPenn, UCLA, UW Madison (3), Indiana University, Columbia (TC), Vanderbilt (2), Wash U.
  • Other disciplines: 3 applicants were accepted for the PhD in Business (Cornell), Jurisprudence and Social Policy (UC Berkeley), Education (Oxford). 1 student was accepted for Law School (Harvard).