S01E11 – The Working-Class Philosopher and His Analysis of the Absurdism of Applying to Graduate School and other Musings in the Deconstruction through Philosophy of the Higher Education Industry.

Summary: Trigger Warning: This Episode Addresses the Issues of Depression, Institutional Alienation, the Philosophical Underpinnings of Applying to Graduate School, and the Psychological Implications of rejection. Please be aware that the listeners will hear more explicit language as well as themes of clinical depression and concern with mortality. If these themes easily trigger you, we highly recommend skipping this episode. This Week’s Special Edition Podcast (2 Hour Episode) is an analysis of applying to graduate school from Mr. Brandon Jones, a non-traditional student, and working-class philosopher. Mr. Jones is a non-traditional student who initially failed out of his undergraduate education, returning to complete his undergraduate successfully once he found his intellectual interest, and now reflects on challenges of finding the right graduate program for his interests. Mr. Jones is a working-class philosopher as he is hyper-aware of the hierarchical structure higher education particularly related to incoming graduate student challenges faced in finding their voice in the cacophony of higher education research and pedagogy. Mr. Jones works in the field of Information Technology and has slowly worked toward his undergraduate degree while employed full time. Coleman, Silver, and Kippes explore these themes with Mr. Jones paying particular attention to Mr. Jones’ concerns with higher education, environmental degradation, and what this means for all of us. Note that while all the participants in this podcast are close friends, there are points of healthy debate and analysis resulting in high emotions and discussion particularly at the end.