Professional Development
To Networking & Beyond: Strategies for Successful Networking
By James Steur, a Ph.D. student in political science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign As MPSA 2020 fast approaches, my colleagues have talked to me about the part of conferences they dread more than their presentations: networking. Someone I know remarked, “I feel like an…
Rethinking the Political Science Major - MPSA Roundtable (audio)
This roundtable Rethinking the Political Science Major (audio), chaired by John T. Ishiyama of University of North Texas and featuring J. Cherie Strachan of Central Michigan University, Whitney Lauraine Court of College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University, and Amber Dickinson of…
Show Me the Money: Securing Research Funding
By Charmaine N. Willis of University of Albany One of the most important parts of conducting any research project, regardless of its methodology, is securing research funding. The recent MPSA conference offered several roundtables dedicated to research funding; in this blog, I cover the roundtable…
Public Engagement: Simplify Without Being Simple
By James Steur at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign As a first-generation student, one of my primary goals as an academic is pursuing public scholarship. I want to write in a clear and engaging way for general audiences so they understand political science research and why it makes a…
Keeping It Real: Political Science and Civic Engagement
By Michael Smith of Emporia State University Great #MPSA19 panel discussion regarding blogging, Twitter and podcasting w/@LaraMBrownPhD @NaymaQayum @JustinBullock14 @GreggRMurray and Michael Smith from @emporiastate. Happy to chair such an insightful panel discussion. pic.twitter.com/HzVztFhzJd —…
Fieldwork: Ethical Considerations, Funding, and Data Collection Methods
By Charmaine N. Willis of University of Albany The recent MPSA conference offered many valuable roundtables related to professional development for a variety of populations including graduate students. I had the opportunity to attend the roundtable about how to do fieldwork, an important one for…
Previewing the 77th Annual MPSA Conference Program: A Selection of Professional Development Panels for Graduate Students
By Charmaine N. Willis of University of Albany, SUNY As panelists frantically completing their papers and presentations are acutely aware, the 77th Annual MPSA Conference is fast approaching. In addition to some excellent topical panels, this year’s conference offers a bevy of roundtables on…
The Art of Networking: How to Maximize Your Doctoral Experience
By Francesca Gottardi of the University of Cincinnati When thinking about a doctoral program, the first image that comes to mind is likely to be that of a geeky student sitting at a desk, buried in books. But life in academia is not only about the coursework, although fundamental. It is also about…
Understand Department Culture, Perfect your Personal Statement, and Other Tips on Applying to Graduate School
MPSA Professional Development Roundtable Preview In advance of this year’s MPSA conference (April 4-7, 2019 in Chicago), we asked panelists from the upcoming “Tips on Applying to Graduate School” to share a few of their best tips. Responses varied based on personal experience, but all of those…
MPSA’s Top 10 Blog Posts from 2018
As the calendar year begins to wind down, we take a look back at our most-read articles from 2018. We encourage you to take a quiet moment for another look as you may have missed an article or may simply enjoy the re-read. Please take a moment to share what you would like to see more of in the new…