2024 Pi Sigma Alpha Student Paper Competition
The Omicron chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha invites all chapter members to submit a paper they have written for a Political Science course at The Ohio State University. This competition seeks to recognize and reward scholarship and the pursuit of knowledge within Pi Sigma Alpha membership. First, second, and third place winners will be rewarded not only with a cash prize, but also a merchandise item from the Pi Sigma Alpha Merch Store:
1st place: $100 and a Pi Sigma Alpha Sweatshirt
2nd place: $75 and a Pi Sigma Alpha T-shirt
3rd place: $50 and a Pi Sigma Alpha Thermos
Winners will be celebrated with an Awards Luncheon, where all Omicron Pi Sigma Alpha members and paper scorers will be welcome to a free lunch and refreshments. They will also befeatured on both the university’s Political Science Department website and the Omicron Chapter’s social media accounts.
Papers will be scored by a mix of Political Science faculty members, Pi Sigma Alpha Alumni, and other recognized figures within Ohio State University’s Political Science community. Papers will be scored based on its relevance of the topic to its respective Political Science subfield, organization and clarity, originality, and overall professional quality of the manuscript. Winners will be announced in the first week of April.
- The student must be an undergraduate member of Pi Sigma Alpha to enter their paper into the competition.
- The student must be in good academic standing with Ohio State University at the time of submission.
- The student must be the primary author of the paper and the work must have been performed while the author was a student.
- Each student can only submit one paper.
- Eligible papers must have a minimum of 5 pages and a maximum of fifteen pages.
- The paper must have been written for a Political Science course during the student’s attendance at Ohio State University.
- The paper being submitted must have all identifying information removed (ex. First and last name).
- Papers must be in 12-point type, double-spaced and have one-inch margins.
- All submissions must be made by 11:59PM EST, Friday, March 8, 2024.
Papers submitted that do not meet these requirements will be disqualified.
All Submissions should be sent to Pi Sigma Alpha’s Grants Director, Grace Orians, through email: orians.31@osu.edu
Please include the following information within your email submissions:
- First and Last Name
- Name.#
- Academic Year
- Title of Paper
- What course was the paper written for? (Ex. POLITSC 2150 – Voters and Elections)
- Who was the Instructor for the Course?
- When did you take this course? (Ex. SP24)
- What Political Science subfield(s) does your paper focus on?
- Please submit an abstract for your paper. It must be at least 5 complete sentences that accurately summarize what your paper discusses, and cannot exceed 300 words:
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Pi Sigma Alpha’s Grants Director, Grace Orians, through her email: orians.31@osu.edu
