MPSA Annual Conference

An Honest Conversation: Parenting in the Academy

By James Steur, Ph.D. Candidate, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Parenting is both a fulfilling and demanding experience, and parents in academia face unique professional challenges at all stages in their career. Parents in the academy juggle a high volume of research, teaching, and…


On Returning to In-Person Conferences: A How-To(-Not-Be-Awkward) Guide

By Kelsey Larsen, Assistant Professor at the University of Central Florida   We’re officially back in Chicago in full force for MPSA 2023—and as one of this year’s Conference blogging team, myself and others are here to offer some insider commentary on the overall MPSA experience. The folks…


Last Minute Planning Chicago? You’re Not Alone

By Emily Boykin, Doctoral Candidate in Public Administration at Florida State University If you’re like me, you’re currently sitting in the airport preparing for your flight to Chicago with a preliminary plan of touring the Windy City in between panels, poster sessions, luncheons, business…


Maximizing Feedback About Research During Conference Sessions

By James Steur, Ph.D. Candidate, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The 80th MPSA Conference is just around the corner, and if you’re like me I’m excited to explore new restaurants in downtown Chicago, present my research, and blog about exciting panels. Over the years, I’ve written blog…


Thoughts on the Future of Political Science

by Michael A. Smith, Professor of Political Science, Emporia State University Well, #MPSA2022 is in the books. From my perspective, the first in-person MPSA conference since 2019 was a success. As I noted in my previous blog post, the political science conference is likely to see permanent changes…


Define Your Success: A Roundtable on Surviving Graduate School

By James Steur, Ph.D. Candidate, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Graduate school is an exciting time for students to explore their research interests and develop as a scholar. However, the experience also poses its own set of challenges: an intense workload, understanding statistical…


The Future of the Political Science Conference

by Michael A. Smith, Professor of Political Science, Emporia State University The MPSA’s in-person conference is back!  After being canceled entirely in 2020 and held virtually in 2021, this year’s conference has returned to Chicago’s Palmer House Hilton.  Old haunts like the Parlor, State and…


Conference Smarter Not Harder: An Interview with Dr. Gustavo Diaz

By James Steur, Ph.D. Candidate, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign In this blog post, I’m interviewing Gustavo Diaz (pictured at left): a recent PhD graduate and Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for Inter-American Policy and Research at Tulane University. Gustavo has attended MPSA six…


The ICPSR Summer Program: Furthering Great Research and Inspiring Great People

By: Scott Campbell, ICPSR Summer Program Communications Coordinator The ICPSR Summer Program in Quantitative Methods of Social Research started in 1963, and we’ve been called many things since then. Many know us as simply “ICPSR” or “the Summer Program,” and others (hopefully) fondly call our…


The Institute for Humane Studies - Working for You

Submitted by The Institute for Humane Studies When you think of the role of academia in society, what comes to mind? Perhaps you envision broader, intellectual discourse, or the civil exchange of ideas? It might be that you’re interested in how philosophy, politics, and economics are interwoven to…