Graduate Student Article Award: Detailed Overview

The Nomination Process | The Application | Selection and Approval

The Nomination Process

Invitations are only sent to students nominated by a faculty member. Faculty can nominate students using the nomination forms. Please note that the nomination forms are organized by subject area and that faculty should be sure to download the correct form. A student may not be nominated for more than one subject area. The award is limited to participating Oxford Bibliographies subject areas.

Faculty can nominate as many students as they would like as long as the nominees are well advanced in the dissertation writing process. We do not accept nominations of master’s students or students that are still at the dissertation proposal stage. Nominees should be able to write concisely, to clearly identify intellectual debates, and to be objective. They should be far enough along in their work to be able demonstrate a strong command of the literature in their area of expertise. Nominations are subject to approval by the editorial team at Oxford University Press.

The Application

Qualified nominees will receive a formal invitation from the Oxford Bibliographies editorial team with instructions for submitting a proposal along with access to Oxford Bibliographies so that they can familiarize themselves with the project. Nominees will be asked to send in their curriculum vitae, a sample chapter from their dissertation (if possible, the introductory chapter, or the chapter that includes a discussion of the related literatures), a copy of their dissertation’s bibliography, and the names of their dissertation committee members or external examiners, if known. Nominees will also be asked to include a 750-word statement about their proposed Oxford Bibliographies contribution identifying the literature which will be discussed. If accepted for contract, the proposal statement will serve as a starting point for determining, with the editorial team, the exact focus of the nominee’s contribution.

Selection and Approval for Publication

The Oxford Bibliographies editorial team in conjunction with the editor-in-chief and advisory editors of the subject area for which the student was nominated will review the proposals. Proposals will be evaluated based on the following criteria: strong writing skills, demonstration of scholarly excellence, command of the literature, and concision of writing style. Contracts will only be offered to authors of proposals that meet the above criteria and are of direct relevance to Oxford Bibliographies content plans. The exact focus of the graduate contributions will be determined in close coordination with the Oxford Bibliographies editorial team.

Up to five proposals per year per participating subject area will be chosen by the Oxford Bibliographies editorial team to receive a contract. Awards will only be presented to authors of contracted articles that are successfully peer reviewed and subsequently approved for publication by the editorial team. Those approved for publication will receive an official award letter and an honorarium.

Note that all proposals submitted to the Graduate Student Article Award may be considered for publication in Oxford Bibliographies outside the context of this competition.

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