Overview
The Society for Political Methodology is pleased to announce the renewal of The Society for Political Methodology’s Expansions Initiative.
Our goal is to increase the diversity of the political methodology community and the field of political science. Our plan is to identify promising students from underrepresented communities and recruit them into the field. The Expansions Initiative offers these students unique learning experiences intended to stimulate interest in political methodology and helps these students prepare to apply to political science graduate programs.
A cohort of 8 student fellows will be invited to participate in the first summer session of the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) Summer Program. Following successful completion of that program, students are invited to partner with faculty mentors and advance research agendas as well as to network with peers. We plan to use this process to establish a pipeline to graduate school.
Since 1963, the ICPSR has offered the Summer Program in Quantitative Methods of Social Research. Sometimes called “summer camp for social sciences,” the ICPSR Summer Program provides rigorous, hands-on training in statistical techniques, research methodologies, and data analysis. ICPSR Summer Program courses emphasize the integration of methodological strategies with the theoretical and practical concerns that arise in research on substantive issues. Participants in each year's Summer Program generally represent about 30 different disciplines from more than 350 colleges, universities, and organizations around the world. Because of the premier quality of instruction and unparalleled opportunities for networking, the ICPSR Summer Program is internationally recognized as the leader for training in research methodologies and technologies used across the social, behavioral, and medical sciences.
The ICPSR Summer Program will be offering courses in a hybrid format. Expansions Initiative fellows will take courses online, participate in a series of Expansions Initiative webinar events, and join a Slack channel organized by the Society of Political Methodology to receive regular mentorship and build community.
At the end of their ICPSR Summer Program experience, Expansions Initiative fellows will be paired with a faculty mentors who will collaborate with the fellows on original research projects. The Society for Political Methodology will provide $4,000 in funding to support this mentored research.
Interested students should complete this application form (https://forms.gle/KF1GSxgUNNf94A5s5) and ask a faculty member to send one letter of recommendation to Clayton Webb at webb767@ku.edu.
The deadline for applications is typically in March, and participants should expect to be informed of their selection shortly thereafter.
Only students who are currently enrolled in a US-based institution are eligible to apply.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Do I have to be a political science major or completely committed to going to grad school/specializing in political methodology to apply? The aim of the program is to diversify the subfield of political methodology, so we are particularly enthusiastic about students for whom statistics and research methods are likely to be a focus. Of course, many prospective graduate students have not had the time to consider what the focus of their graduate work will be and the choices available to students may vary across universities. You are not required to apply to graduate school or specialize in political methodology to be part of the Expansions Initiative but we hope you are open to the possibility. There is no requirement for being a political science major. We expect students to use this program as a point of evaluation as they decide if graduate school is a good fit.
2. Are there other specific qualifications I need to apply (e.g., classes taken, familiarization with specific software…)? The sole requirement is a potential interest in graduate school in political science. That can be demonstrated in a variety of ways – through a statement of interest, through courses taken, or through letters of recommendation. We do not expect applicants to meet any specific prerequisites.
3. Where can I access the application form? The link is here: https://forms.gle/KF1GSxgUNNf94A5s5
4. Is there a preferred format for faculty recommendations? Letters should be submitted as .pdf documents. You may want to share information about the ICPSR Summer Program and the Expansions Initiative. If faculty have questions, encourage them to reach out to the current director of the initiative, Clayton Webb, at webb767@ku.edu.
Recent Awards: 2024 Expansions Initiative Fellows
The Society of Political Methodology extends its congratulations to Monica Gebrehiwot (University of Houston), Joleena Mundy (University of Indiana), Sharanya Majumder (Dartmouth College), and Braiden Bangalan (University of Kansas), who were selected to participate in the 2024 Society for Political Methodology Expansions Initiative.
The Expansions Initiative seeks to increase the diversity of the political methodology community and the field of political science. The goal of the initiative is to encourage undergraduate and master’s students from underrepresented minority groups to apply to political science PhD programs that emphasize quantitative methods. A cohort of 4 student fellows were invited to participate in the first summer session of the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) Summer Program. The Society for Political Methodology and the American Political Science Association covered the cost of tuition. At the end of their ICPSR Summer Program experience, Expansions Initiative fellows were paired with faculty mentors who collaborated with the fellows on original research projects. The Society for Political Methodology and the American Political Science Association provided $4000 in funding to support this mentored research.