Graduate Seminar on Global Transformations

2007-2008 GSGT Awardees

2006-2007 GSGT Awardees

The Center for International and Comparative Studies (CICS) announces a not-for-credit seminar for master's students and doctoral students at the pre-candidacy level intending to pursue field-based research outside the United States.

ELIGIBILITY

This seminar is open to students in the early stages of graduate training with interests in international and area studies who can demonstrate goals of completing training and research through the doctorate. Graduate students from across disciplines are invited to apply.

PURPOSE

The Graduate Seminar on Global Transformations offers students the opportunity to develop theses projects, pre-dissertation proposals, and dissertation prospectuses with their peers, in an interdisciplinary setting. The goals of the seminar include:

• Increasing students' capacity for understanding research designs and systems of evidence developed in other professions and disciplines
• Examining issues of ethics and values in the development and conduct of cross-cultural and cross-national research
• Encouraging high-level critical discussion of methodology and epistemology
• Discussing different qualities and characteristics of data in international research.

ORGANIZATION

The seminar will explore epistemological connections and dissonance among disciplines and professions involved in global transformations. It will meet approximately seven times a term for two-hour sessions, which will be organized around the discussion of presentations by participating students. Several sessions will also be devoted to the discussion of papers, research proposals, and faculty and visitor presentations.

Each student admitted to GSGT will have access to a restricted research fund of up to $4,500, to be used for a preliminary visit to the prospective foreign research site and for specialized language training necessary for dissertation research.

REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

Students must commit to participating in the seminar for three terms, and will be expected to make a presentation to the group following their research trip, and to discuss methodology, challenges, and results with seminar participants.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Contact Folake Graves at Tel: 734.764.3149 Email: fograves@umich.edu