Download the call-for-papers (PDF Format)
Bucharest, 5.-6. September 2011
Call for Papers
Background
EGPA is pleased to offer the sixth annual symposium for doctoral students and young scholars on September 5.-6., 2011, immediately preceding the annual EGPA conference in Bucharest. The symposium is designed to support young researchers in the field of Public Administration and Public Management to improve their research skills, to learn from colleagues and to enhance their opportunities for an academic career. It has the following objectives, to:
a) promote the development of a community of young scholars in a spirit of collaborative research;
b) provide a qualified setting for feedback on participants’ current research and guidance for future action;
c) help students develop publishing strategies.
There are several specific benefits of the symposium: The group size is limited. Groups are internationally and disciplinary mixed. Sufficient time is allowed for in depth discussion of each person’s work and for networking both with other students and with members of the European PA research community. Faculty at the symposium will be leading experts in their fields. Participants also have access to the main conference at a reasonable rate.
The 2011 PhD symposium will have the following format: The organizers will offer a number plenary sessions on topics of interest to all PhD students such as research strategies, methodological issues and publishing challenges. This will be followed by smaller group sessions during which individual papers will be discussed in depth (see below). The composition of the group’s sessions will be determined by demand. Groups may be mixed, but if there are sufficient participants working in a given area or on a given theme, specialised groups will be used with appropriate seniors from that field.
The symposium is open to PhD students and young researchers working in academic institutions and research centres in Europe and neighbouring countries.
Venue of the symposium
The PhD symposium is part of the annual EGPA conference, which will be held from 7.-10. September 2011 at the National School of Political Studies and Public Administration (NSPSPA) in Bucharest (Romania). The conference organizers will provide opportunities for participants to get accommodation at a reasonable rate. Participants will have the opportunity to stay together in a hotel with a reasonable rate during symposium and conference in order to intensify their contacts and discussions.
Format of the symposium
The symposium is open only to invited and active participants. Each accepted participant is expected to deliver a paper, to present it during the symposium and to act as discussant of another paper. The time frame for each paper will be as follows: presentation by author: 20 minutes, comments by discussant: 10 minutes, open debate and reply by author: 15 minutes. Both the presentations and the subsequent feedbacks and discussions are expected to contribute to the improvement of papers and to improve their chance of future publication. Depending on the number of accepted papers, the organizers will schedule either a 1½ or two day symposium which will be composed of two joint sessions (methodology etc.) and several parallel sessions on specific fields. The symposium will start on Monday after lunch and end Tuesday evening (with a possible extension on Wednesday morning if the number of participants requires this). The sessions will be chaired by the convenors and other invited senior academics. From experience, we expect proposals from public management, e-government, public sector ethics and other fields in public administration/policy. There will be a social event on the first evening of the symposium (Monday evening). All participants will receive a certificate of participation from the conference organizers.
Submission of abstracts and evaluation process
Selection of participants will be based on a two to three-page extended abstract, including: title, author information, research question, theoretical background, methodology, expected results and intended contribution. Abstracts will be judged against the following criteria: a) originality; b) theoretical foundations; c) rigour and appropriateness of methodology; d) potential contribution to advancing the relevant field of public administration. The deadline for abstract submission is 1st May 2011. Abstracts should be sent by e-mail (pdf or Word format) to the convenors (see below).
Best paper for fast track treatment
The convenors will promote admission of the best paper of the symposium to a fast track review in one of the major Public Administration/Management journals.
Dates to remind
May 1st: Deadline for submission of extended abstracts by e-mail.
June 1st: Abstract evaluation, selection of papers to be presented in the symposium and notification of acceptance.
August 1st: Submission of full papers.
August 15th: Selection of discussants.
September 5-6.: Symposium at NSPSPA in Bucharest.
Participation fee
The participation fee is € 50 for the Symposium. The fee for both the Symposium and for the EGPA conference is €200 (the conference fee for PhD students is normally €175). Accommodation is not included.
Please note that only PhD students with an accepted paper for presentation can register for the Symposium.
Convenors:
- Prof. Christoph Reichard (University of Potsdam, Germany) (reichard@t-online.de)
- Dr. Frank Bannister (Trinity College Dublin, ireland) (fbnnistr@tcd.ie)
- Prof. Ani Matei (National School of Political Studies & Public Administration, Romania) (amatei@snspa.ro)
