What
is
the Philosophy, Interpretation, and Culture (PIC) program?
Does
PIC have a fixed course of study for its students?
What
does PIC look for in an application?
What
extracurricular opportunities does PIC offer to the student?
Further
Information
What is the
Philosophy, Interpretation, and Culture (PIC) program? (PIC)
As noted in the PIC brochure, Binghamton University's
interdisciplinary studies in Philosophy, Interpretation, and Culture
address the ways in which cultural forms of knowledge and expression
shape and are shaped by human practices and experience. Of particular
importance are recent developments in history, theory, and practice
that promise to stretch the boundaries of philosophy and transform the
discipline and the university: post-critical continental philosophy;
coloniality critique, decolonial theory and practice, and philosophy of
colonialism; feminist philosophy; gay, lesbian, and queer studies;
multicultural studies and critical race theory; critical social theory;
and cultural critique, including aesthetic, representational, and
ecological practices.
A major concern of the program is with history and
tradition, with how they are to be thought and how they contribute to
thought. The history of philosophy along with other histories in
Western and nonWestern traditions--of art and literature, political and
social theory, philosophy of history and science, and theories of
gender, ethnicity, culture, and class--are at work in these critical
discussions.
The program explores relations between philosophy and
other disciplines and critically examines disciplinary boundaries,
historical and institutional. It seeks to foster discussions not
confined by disciplinary boundaries concerning intelligibility,
legitimacy, and disciplinarity.
Does PIC have a
fixed course of study for its students?
While all PIC students must comply with the
requirements set by the Graduate
School for study, PIC does not require
a fixed course of study for its students. Rather, the PIC program
relocates power from the institution to the student and her advisor.
Hence, PIC students choose classes in close consultation with their
advisor and, while PIC offers its own courses each semester, PIC
students are not limited to the PIC curriculum. The intellectual work
performed in the PIC program does not take its possibility to be given;
choosing courses in close consultation with one’s advisor allows the
intellectual work performed in PIC to find its own conditions of
possibility. However, PIC is not and should not be considered a
twelve-step program to fulfillment. Although the student plays an
active role in selecting his own course of study, the student is not
‘free’ to do as she pleases when fashioning his course of study.
What does PIC
look for in an Application?
All components of the application are taken seriously,
but the decisive factor in admission and funding decisions is the
statement of purpose. We want to know what kinds of problems you want
to be thinking about in the next few years, and how you want to
approach such problems. It is largely on this basis that we decide
whether or not PIC might be an appropriate environment within which you
might productively confront the problems that in fact constitute the
provocation of your intellectual work.
What
extracurricular opportunities does PIC offer to the student?
While there are several ways for PIC students to
become involved in the program outside of class, participation is
entirely voluntary.
Each semester, workshops are made available to the
student through CPIC
(The Center for Interdisciplinary Studies in
Philosophy, Interpretation, and Culture). Current topics are listed at
the CPIC
website.
Students can also become involved in PICSA (The
Philosophy, Interpretation, and Culture Student Association). PICSA,
explicit in its name, is an association of PIC students who desire to
be actively involved in the life of the university and the program.
Positions include: President, Treasurer, Executive Committee
Representative, Governing Committee Representative, Governing Committee
Representative, GSO Senator, GSEU Senator, Undergraduate
Representative, Conference Coordinator.
Each spring PIC students coordinate a conference in
association with the PIC program. Topics and papers are chosen by
students, although, participation is not limited to PIC students. In
the past, topics have been developed in and from CPIC workshops;
however, as the Conference Coordinator is an elected member of PICSA,
topics are and have been developed in conjunction with PICSA members.
For more information, see The
Conference Page
University Bulletin
and Catalog
The procedures of the Graduate School are described in
the University Bulletin and Catalog.
Copies of the Bulletin and Catalog
and application forms may be obtained on line or from the Office of
Graduate Admissions, Binghamton University, P.O. Box 6000, Binghamton,
NY 13902-6000. The on line procedure is preferred by the Graduate
School and is less expensive.
Further
Information
For further information, please write to:
Joshua Price
Director of Graduate Studies, PIC
Binghamton University
P.O. Box 6000
Binghamton, NY 13902-6000 USA
E-mail
dcanfiel@binghamton.edu
