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YOU'VE
worked hard on your sociology paper. You think it's really good.
So does your instructor. What else can you do with your paper?
Here are ten suggestions:
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Write
a Senior Thesis
Use your paper as a springboard for a senior
thesis in the spring semester of your senior year. For information
on theses, see the sociology program's Guide
to Senior Theses. (You may want to apply for an Academic
Council Scholarship to fund your senior thesis research.
Information about and applications for this support are
available from the Office of Student Affairs.)
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Present
Your Paper at Skidmore's Academic Festival
At the end of each school year, Skidmore
holds an Academic Festival celebrating excellent work. Present
your paper at the Festival. Click here
for the Academic Festival Web page or see the Office of
Academic Advising for information on the festival and how
to submit your paper.
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Present
Your Paper at Student Symposia like the National Conference
on Undergraduate Research (NCUR)
The NCUR
conference is held each spring. Under certain conditions,
the college may cover some of your costs of attending NCUR.
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Present
Your Paper at Professional Meetings
Present your work at professional meetings
such as the annual meetings of the New York Sociological
Society or the Eastern
Sociological Society. Sociology faculty can offer
suggestions on upcoming meetings. Every spring many
students in the Senior Seminar in Sociology present
papers at the Eastern Sociological Society meetings,
but you do not have to be in the Senior Seminar to do
so.
To give a paper at professional meetings, you first
need to submit a proposal and have it accepted. Typically,
proposals (and sometimes the papers themselves) must
be submitted to the association sponsoring the meetings
six months or so before the meetings. Acceptance rates
for meetings vary considerably from easy-to-get-accepted
to very-difficult-to-get-accepted. (Under certain conditions,
Skidmore College may cover some of your costs of attending
professional meetings. Click here
for a Web site or see the Office of Student Affairs
for information on support.)
Not so incidentally, some Skidmore sociology majors
have received student paper awards at professional meetings.
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Publish
Your Paper in a National Student Publication
Several national publications are exclusively
for student work. For example, the Wittenberg Review:
An Undergraduate Journal of the Liberal Arts, published
by Wittenberg University, presents good work by students
across the country. See a recent issue for editorial policies
and an editorial address.
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Publish
Your Paper in a Professional Journal
Talk with sociology faculty about journals
that would be most appropriate. For information about journals'
editorial policies, style requirements, etc., see the American
Sociological Association's Publishing Options: An Author's
Guide to Journals (available in the department office
-- 218 Tisch Learning Center). Also review recent issues
of journals at the Skidmore library. Journals' acceptance
rates vary considerably.
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Show
Your Paper To Prospective Employers
Depending on the job, you might show your
paper to a prospective employer. Use your project to demonstrate
your research skills, quality of thought, writing abilities,
etc. If you write a senior thesis, you will probably want
to list the thesis on your resume.
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Show
Your Paper To Prospective Graduate Schools
Many graduate or professional schools ask
for examples of applicants work, so you may want to send
a copy of your paper when you apply.
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Submit
Your Paper for a Periclean Award
This possibility is up to your instructor.
Each May Skidmore's Periclean Society recognizes outstanding
work by four graduating seniors. If your instructor thinks
your paper is outstanding (not just good or excellent, but
outstanding), he or she may nominate it for a Periclean
Award. The deadline for nominations is early April. Periclean
Awards usually recognize senior theses or comparable projects
rather than papers for "regular" courses, but
the latter are eligible and sometimes receive awards. (Note
that only seniors are eligible for Periclean Awards and
nomination is up to faculty. You cannot submit your work
yourself.)
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Submit
Your Paper for a General Social Survey Award
Papers
based on data from the General Social Survey are eligible
for the National Opinion Research Center's annual Student
Paper Competition. Winners receive cash and other prizes
as well as national recognition. Click here
for more information.
Otherwise,
hang your paper on your refrigerator next to your shopping
list.
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Created
June 2000; modified September 26, 2000
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