Category Archives: GSCS life

11th Annual GSCS Interdisciplinary Graduate Student Conference, April 26 2018

Join us again at the Liu Institute on April 26th, 2018 for our 11th Annual interdisciplinary graduate student conference! The conference will be held on April 26th, 2018 and the deadline for submission is March 31, 2018

This year’s theme: Borders, Boundaries, and Space Between.

Inquiry in the social sciences is focused on borders and boundaries. Inequality – the social issue at the heart of social science – is premised on the inclusion of some and the exclusion of others. Studying inequality also requires operationalizing and categorizing all manner of phenomena into mutual exclusivity. This extends not only to the subject matter we analyze, but to our epistemologies as well. For example, sociologists categorize some sociology as ‘public’, some as ‘professional’; we tend to be sympathetic to particular theoretical traditions/ideologies over others; we tend to prefer either quantitative or qualitative analyses, and so on. Nevertheless, we imbricate across these categorizations, and there exists considerable space between them characterized by liminality, resilience, resistance, or resurgence. Because the notion of borders and boundaries in social science is broad and dynamic, we seek proposals that reflect, critique, expand on, and/or otherwise analyze an array of boundaries/borders or their interstices. Some areas of interest include: geography/national borders, migration, refugees, and climate change; socio-economic inequality and its attendant intersectionalities; identity/racial politics and social activism/advocacy; theoretical or conceptual analyses related to symbolic/performative boundaries; politics, civil society, and private life; social activism/protest. We welcome abstract submissions from all disciplines.

Keynote: 

This year’s keynote speaker is Dr. Elizabeth Saewyc. Dr. Saewyc is an internationally recognized leader in research about vulnerable and marginalized adolescents. Over the past 20 years, she has conducted mix-methods research with many different groups of vulnerable youth, including runaway and street-involved youth; sexually abused and sexually exploited teens; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, Two Spirit, queer and questioning (LGBTQ) adolescents; youth in custody; immigrants, home-stay students and refugees; and Indigenous youth. Her research emphasizes how stigma, violence, and trauma affect adolescent health and risk behaviours, as well as the protective factors that foster resilience among these vulnerable populations of youth.

Information:

  • Abstracts should be no more than 500 words
  • Please include your full name, discipline, affiliated university, and contact information
  • Please submit your abstract by March 31st, 2018 to ubc.gscs@gmail.com
  • Abstracts should be single-spaced in .doc or .pdf format
  • Send abstracts electronically to ubc.gscs@gmail.com with the subject heading “GSCS 2018 Conference Abstract”
  • Like & follow our Facebook event page for submission details

10th Annual GSCS Interdisciplinary Graduate Student Conference, April 27 2017

Join us at the Liu Institute on April 27th, 2017 for our 10th Annual interdisciplinary graduate student conference! We will have a great set of presentations from a range of fields and substantive areas.

CFA link Below!

GSCS Conference 2017 – Call for Abstracts POSTER

Call for Abstracts: 9th Annual GSCS Student Conference

The UBC Graduate Student Council of Sociology (GSCS) seeks abstracts for its ninth annual interdisciplinary graduate conference taking place May 14, 2016 at the University of British Columbia (ICICS Building).

We invite participants to present research that “unsettles” or transforms existing knowledge about the social world. This event aims to bring together graduate students working within diverse areas of social science to think about the challenges and opportunities for conducting innovative research. How do you engage with long held traditions, orthodoxies, or boundaries in your discipline? What new areas or methodologies are you exploring in your research?

Potential topics include but are not limited to:

  • New twists on classic theories
  • Bridging fields through interdisciplinary research
  • Innovative research methods and sources of data
  • New questions around research ethics
  • Reflexivity and the “expert”-“lay” knowledge divide

Presentation-based panels mean no papers are required, and we welcome proposals at all stages of research. Presentations will be approximately 10 minutes long and will serve as intellectual platforms for group discussions about issues relating to the conference theme.

Submission Instructions:

  • Abstracts should be no more than 250 words
  • Please include your full name, discipline, affiliated university, and contact information
  • Abstracts should be single-spaced in .doc or .pdf format and sent electronically to UBC.GSCS@gmail.com with the subject heading “GSCS 2015 Conference Abstract”  

The deadline for abstracts is March 31st, 2016

Abstract submissions from all social science/humanities disciplines are welcome!

GSCS Conference 2016 - Call for Abstracts-page-001

Call for Papers: 8th Annual GSCS Student Conference

The UBC Graduate Student Council of Sociology (GSCS) seeks paper proposals for its eighth annual interdisciplinary graduate conference taking place May 9, 2015 at the University of British Columbia (Learning Exchange Center).

Abduction: Embracing the “alien” aspects of social research 

In methods courses, social science students are taught the research process is straightforward: there  is a “formula” for coming up with a research question, for gathering data, and for turning data into theory. In practice, students learn that research is anything but formulaic–questions change, interview protocols and surveys evolve, and once-foundational points of reference in the literature lose sway in the process. To bring these familiar yet taboo topics into the foreground, some sociologists have begun to advocate for an “abductive” approach to sociological research, where the actual process of theorizing is made explicit. Unlike grounded theorists, who claim that theories can emerge cleanly from the data, or more traditional sociologists who claim to “deduce” objective truths, abductive sociologists take a more practical view of research as an iterative back-and-forth between questions and answers, theory and data, researchers and participants.

We invite conference participants to present the behind-the-scenes aspects of their research projects. How do you move beyond empirical observations to constructing a theory? How do you reconcile existing theoretical conversations with this new data? What does the practice of social science research really involve? Instead of focusing on research results, the idea for this conference is to focus on the research process. Panels will consist of 5-8 minute self-reflexive presentations on topics such as:

  • Turning ideas and observations into a research topic
  • Finding the “right” literature
  • Gathering data – dealing with unexpected results
  • Moving beyond empirical observations to construct a theory
  • Introducing research insights into the academic conversation

If reading this list brings to mind a vivid moment of your research experience, go on this! We are looking for panelists to recount personal experiences of a hurdle in the research process, along with insights or strategies they’ve developed as a result. Abstracts can be a summary of this experience.

Presentation-based panels mean no papers are required. Presentations will be used as a lifting off point for group discussions of similar research issues and solutions.

Keynote speaker: David Wachsmuth, Killam Postdoctoral Research Fellow and SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia

Please submit abstracts of up to 250 words to: UBC.GSCS@gmail.com with the subject heading “GSCS 2015 Conference Abstract.” The deadline for abstracts is: March 31st, 2015.

Abstract submissions from all social science/humanities disciplines are welcome!

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2014 CFP Sociology Grad Conference

Hi everyone,

The UBC Graduate Student Council of Sociology (GSCS) seeks paper proposals for its seventh annual interdisciplinary graduate conference, “Descending the Ivory Tower: Connecting Theory & Practice in a Changing Social World” taking place May 10, 2014 at the University of British Columbia. Please see the attached poster.

The conference is an avenue for graduate students from multiple departments and institutions to come together to share empirical research and theoretical insights on our changing social world. Papers, panels, posters or multi-media presentations are welcome. All topics and frameworks are encouraged, however we especially seek submissions that critically engage with the conference theme linking social theory to its practical applications. Please feel free to submit an individual abstract or propose a panel along with other students.

Please submit abstracts of up to 250 words to: UBC.GSCS@gmail.com with the subject heading “GSCS 2014 Conference Abstract.” The deadline for abstracts is: March 31st, 2014.

Sincerely,

UBC 2014 -Descending the Ivory Tower, May 10

The GSCS Conference Committee

2013 Conference

Hi everyone,

The UBC Graduate Student Council of Sociology (GSCS) seeks paper proposals for its sixth annual interdisciplinary graduate conference, “Agency, Power, and Structure: Navigating the Social World” taking place May 11, 2013 in the UBC Anthropology-Sociology building. Please see the attached poster.

The conference is an avenue for graduate students to come together to share empirical research and theoretical insights on our changing social world. Papers, panels, posters or multi-media presentations are welcome. All topics and frameworks are encouraged, however we especially seek submissions that critically engage with themes of social change, social justice, collective action, new technology, and other issues that take into account recent local and international developments. Please feel free to submit an individual abstract or propose a panel along with other students.

Please submit abstracts of up to 250 words to: UBC.GSCS@gmail.com with the subject heading “GSCS 2013 Conference Abstract.” The deadline for abstracts is April 1st, 2013.

Click to see our beautiful call for papers!

2012-13 Executive

We have a new exec! Check them out here.

On Tuesday, the department is welcoming this year’s first Seminar Series Speaker. Join us for Philp Cohen’s talk and for the discussion afterwards with other grad students!

First GSCS meeting of the new school year!

Please join us for the first meeting of the Graduate Student Council of Sociology (GSCS) this Wednesday, September 5 from 1:30 to 2:30 in room 24 (basement level of the ANSO building).

We will be electing our new executive and talking about plans for the upcoming year, the search for a new Head of Sociology, conference funding, amongst other things.

Hope to see many of you there!

Departmental launch

Don’t miss the Department of Sociology’s 2012 Academic Launch this Tuesday, September 4!

12:00 noon – Come to the Networking Lunch in the Lino Lounge to eat sushi and mingle with the many faculty, staff and students that you will be working alongside this year.

1:30 – Orientation events – specific to new grad students and undergrads and new sessional instructors.

3:30 – Stop by and watch our local experts be challenged in a game of sociological JEOPARDY! in 207.

5:00 – Conclude the day with more celebration and a burger at the annual department BBQ.

BBQ + conference

The SSA, the department’s undergrad association, is organizing a barbecue in the courtyard on Friday to celebrate the end of the term! The event starts at 4 and we encourage you all to come and mingle. :)

And of course, our annual grad conference is this Saturday, from 9:30 to 5! Come for the day or stop by for a panel or two – either way, everyone is welcome. The full program is available if you click on the conference tab above.