Anthropology Paper Prize

The Anthropology Department awards an annual paper prize to the student who produces the highest rated paper in any anthropology course during a given academic year. Please read the following for the details about eligibility, schedule, nominations, and judging.

Eligibility

All students enrolled in regular courses offered by the Anthropology department are eligible. Papers prepared as honor theses are not eligible. Nominated papers are expected to have been prepared as part of the student's normal graded work for a given course. Submissions may be research papers, essays, or directed writings. Papers should be at least six pages in length.

Schedule

The prize will be awarded annually at the time of the Spring graduation. Papers from the previous summer and academic year are eligible for consideration. Nominations can be made at any time, but the judging will occur after the end of the classes in the Spring semester.

Nomination process

Student papers are to be nominated by faculty members. Faculty are limited to 2 nominations per year. Nominations can be submitted to the award committee at any time. In addition to a hard copy of the student's paper, nominations will include a faculty statement explaining 1) the general qualities of the paper in terms of thoughtfulness, writing, and research; and 2) the success of the paper in meeting the expectations of the assignment.

Judging

The Anthropology Paper Prize committee will consist of three faculty members who will serve as judges. For 2006-2007 the committee consists of Cheryl Mwaria, Tim Daniels, and Chris Matthews. The committee will read the submitted papers and nomination statements and select the best overall paper from the group as the prize-winner by consensus. The committee will prepare a statement explaining their decision.

Prize

The prize will consist of a certificate, a $100 cash award, and a one-year subscription to Current Anthropology.

Questions?

Feel free to send an e-mail to either department chairperson Dan Varisco or committee chair Christopher Matthews.