Announcing a Call for Proposals for the Haas Junior Scholars Program for Doctoral Candidates

March 2, 2015

The Haas Junior Scholars Program for Doctoral Candidates at the Institute of East Asian Studies (IEAS) allows Berkeley PhD candidates from various disciplines in East Asian studies to come together for twice-monthly meetings of Doctoral Candidate Working Groups during the academic year to discuss perspectives, methodological approaches, empirical research and original findings centered on their dissertation projects. Participants are expected to share draft chapters of research in progress and to receive feedback from peers. Collaboration between humanists, social scientists and additional fields such as environmental or health sciences, city planning, architecture and design, journalism, and so forth are not required but much encouraged. Preference in awards will be given to groups that bring diverse disciplinary perspectives and empirical expertise to shed light on related research questions that may cohere around underlying themes.

Proposals are invited from two UC Berkeley doctoral candidates who will act as co-conveners responsible for articulating the intellectual agenda of the Working Group, and for assembling the names and project titles of at least five other doctoral candidates interested in the group. While not an absolute requirement, it is strongly preferred that the two co-conveners be from different departments. Student organizers are encouraged, with the assistance of the IEAS staff if necessary, to convene planning sessions and to open bSpace accounts or use other online methods to involve a maximum number of interested candidates from various departments. Ideally the Working Group should consist of 10 core members who are committed and obligated to attend the forums on a regular basis. Each regular member will receive a stipend of $2,500 over the duration of the project for individual research support; the two co-conveners will each receive a $3,000 stipend. Each group will be offered, in addition, a sum of up to $2,500 to help with the payment of refreshments for group meetings and inviting visiting speakers. Group meetings are not required to be open to the public. Working Groups may, however, choose to invite faculty members and graduate students as visiting participants on an ad hoc basis.

Groups are expected to organize a public conference within 6 months of the conclusion of the funding period, or within a reasonable period of time if the group has applied for extramural funding to subsidize the conference. These conferences should be open to the public and publicized on the IEAS events calendar well in advance of the event. All regular members of the group are expected to present papers. In addition, the conveners, in consultation with regular group members, may issue invitations to additional junior scholars from off campus to serve as paper-givers, and to faculty members on or off campus to serve as commentators. These Haas Junior Scholars Conferences will be provided funding on top of the allocation for the Haas Doctoral Candidate Working Groups. The IEAS-supported portion of the budget for the Haas Junior Scholars Conference should not exceed $8,000, and ideally should include support from other sources. Group organizers for the 2017-2018 program will be expected to submit a proposed budget for the Haas Junior Scholars Conference by June, 2017.

The two conveners of the group will be responsible for the group's administration. IEAS, when necessary, will provide space for meetings and limited clerical assistance (i.e. supplying meeting needs, processing business transactions such as reimbursements, and helping with the organization of the Haas Junior Scholars Conferences on East Asia).