It's meant to be 500 words, and convey a couple of things: (1) why I'm switching from philosophy to public administration, (2) why this particular program is right for me, (3) what my goals are going forward, (4) to provide a hint that the committee ought to look for a medical addendum that explains my medical problems. I'm hoping it conveys those things without being too bad, overall. Please, let me know what you think.
Although there are many vexing questions in philosophy, one of the core ones is of the nature of morality; "what is right to do?" I always thought that being a philosopher would involve tailing that question down to the bitter end. The fruit of that labor would be some sliver of knowledge about what humans should do. That was the value of philosophy: bringing that knowledge back to the rest of the world. Through your hard work, humanity would know something that they had not known before.
With time, I found this description to be misleading. While there are still moral truths to be found, there are fewer novel ones to bring back home. Sure, there are novel and contentious issues to be mined, such as genetic enhancement, but the vast majority are issues that most people agree on: that people should not starve, that murder ought not be permissible, etc. The misleading thing is that it is not a problem of knowledge; it is a problem of action. Despite overwhelming consensus, humanity struggles with turning the right idea into right action. I now realize that the most pressing problem of morality is not the former, but instead the latter. Having the right ideas will do us no good if we do not know the right ways to implement them. In this sense, public service work is a logical extension of philosophy-a sort of practical philosophy.
I chose this program because I think it will allow me to grow into the best sort of practical philosopher possible. Philosophy is a liberal arts discipline, and the quantitative rigor this program demands will help me grow as a thinker. But the qualitative skills I have sharpened along the way will also help me stand out as a multidimensional contributor, and help me craft better solutions to our problems.
This program is also a good fit because it allows me to focus on the area I care about the most. While I worry about the environment, human rights, etc. just as much as anyone else, the issue nearest my heart is disability policy. Although there is not explicitly a "disability policy" concentration, the MPP program would allow me to create my own. From looking at courses and the other concentrations, I believe I could put together such a concentration, for the suffering of the disabled has much in common with other forms of marginalization.
In pursuing the practical end of disability issues, I would work to champion sane policy and improve the organizations that implement it. My natural inclination is to address the issues relevant to my disease, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. But, as I said, these people suffer in familiar ways. In helping my fellow sufferers, I could help not just the disabled, but other marginalized groups as well. In my eyes, that would be the best possible version of philosophy. I would take my knowledge of what is right, and I would use it to do the right thing.
Although there are many vexing questions in philosophy, one of the core ones is of the nature of morality; "what is right to do?" I always thought that being a philosopher would involve tailing that question down to the bitter end. The fruit of that labor would be some sliver of knowledge about what humans should do. That was the value of philosophy: bringing that knowledge back to the rest of the world. Through your hard work, humanity would know something that they had not known before.
With time, I found this description to be misleading. While there are still moral truths to be found, there are fewer novel ones to bring back home. Sure, there are novel and contentious issues to be mined, such as genetic enhancement, but the vast majority are issues that most people agree on: that people should not starve, that murder ought not be permissible, etc. The misleading thing is that it is not a problem of knowledge; it is a problem of action. Despite overwhelming consensus, humanity struggles with turning the right idea into right action. I now realize that the most pressing problem of morality is not the former, but instead the latter. Having the right ideas will do us no good if we do not know the right ways to implement them. In this sense, public service work is a logical extension of philosophy-a sort of practical philosophy.
I chose this program because I think it will allow me to grow into the best sort of practical philosopher possible. Philosophy is a liberal arts discipline, and the quantitative rigor this program demands will help me grow as a thinker. But the qualitative skills I have sharpened along the way will also help me stand out as a multidimensional contributor, and help me craft better solutions to our problems.
This program is also a good fit because it allows me to focus on the area I care about the most. While I worry about the environment, human rights, etc. just as much as anyone else, the issue nearest my heart is disability policy. Although there is not explicitly a "disability policy" concentration, the MPP program would allow me to create my own. From looking at courses and the other concentrations, I believe I could put together such a concentration, for the suffering of the disabled has much in common with other forms of marginalization.
In pursuing the practical end of disability issues, I would work to champion sane policy and improve the organizations that implement it. My natural inclination is to address the issues relevant to my disease, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. But, as I said, these people suffer in familiar ways. In helping my fellow sufferers, I could help not just the disabled, but other marginalized groups as well. In my eyes, that would be the best possible version of philosophy. I would take my knowledge of what is right, and I would use it to do the right thing.
