BSA Regional Postgraduate Conference:

‘Auto/biographical Approaches to Sociological Research’

The purpose of the conference is to celebrate the auto/biographical and narrative turn within sociology, critically consider issues pertaining to the use of an auto/biographical approach and learn from established researchers in this field.

University of Plymouth

10-4pm 18^th February 2011

Keynote Speakers: 

·        Liz Stanley, Professor of Sociology& Director of the Centre for Narrative & Auto/Biographical Studies, University of Edinburgh.

·        Linden West, Professor of Education and Director of Research Development
in the Education Faculty, Canterbury Christ Church University.

Workshops : ‘Reflexivity’ & ‘Critical Considerations of Auto/biography’

BSA Members    Free

Non-members     £25

Lunch & Refreshments Provided

Please visit www.plymouth.ac.uk/conferences, or call 01752 586600 to book, or for further information.

The aim of the Summer School is to provide methods training opportunities as a supplement to MA and PhD curricula at European universities, as well as to foster debate, interaction, and mutual understanding of various methodological perspectives.

The curriculum covers introductory and intermediate courses in both quantitative and qualitative methods. Participants who successfully complete their courses will be awarded up to 5 ECTS credits by the University of Ljubljana.

http://www.essex.ac.uk/ecpr/events/summerschools/ljubljana/index.aspx

Meeting the Needs of... Postgraduate Taught Students

15^th April 2010 

De Montfort University

http://www.ukcge.ac.uk/events/eventsarea/mtnpgt10

UKCGE are pleased to announce the launch of the programme for the forthcoming workshop on Meeting the Needs of... Postgraduate Taught Students.  A copy of the programme is attached but for further details and bookings, please visit: http://www.ukcge.ac.uk/events/eventsarea/mtnpgt10

Whilst taught postgraduate student numbers have increased by over 70% in the past decade, taught postgraduate degrees are still regarded as something of a ‘fringe activity’ in the UK, all too often falling in the gap between undergraduate and research degree provision. Where do taught postgraduates fit in and how much do we know about their experiences? This event interrogates the taught postgraduate student experience from a number of perspectives to share information and good practice, and as well as gauge diverse experiences across the sector through guided discussions.

Topics will include what postgraduate students are telling us about their experiences, the QAA consultation on draft new master's degree characteristics reference point, the challenges in offering premium fee/distance-learning/non-standard masters programmes, and meeting the needs of international and part-time postgraduate taught students. In addition to a series of interactive workshop sessions and presentations, delegates will also have the opportunity to discuss the issues with colleagues from other institutions in order to understand and develop good-practice within the sector.

This programme has been designed for academic staff and administrative staff involved with or managing, supporting or supervising postgraduate taught students including: Graduate Deans, Academic Staff, Research Managers and Administrative and Staff Development personnel.

The cost of the workshop is £175 for UKCGE Members and £225 for non-members. This price includes lunch, refreshments and a delegate pack.

For the latest information about the event and to book your place please go to: http://www.ukcge.ac.uk/events/eventsarea/mtnpgt10

Loïc Wacquant, Plenary Speaker at the BSA 2010 Annual Conference, will be offering a session, ‘Author meets critics’ on Wednesday 7th November 15.30-17.00 in the Govan Mbeki Room A526C  

Loïc will discuss the empirical basis, methodological rationale, and theoretical aims, as well as the analytic linkages between, his investigations into the body, the ghetto, and the penal state, as anchored by his three books Body and Soul (2004), Urban Outcasts (2008), and Punishing the Poor (2009).

The format of this session is direct discussion between the author and the audience (especially doctoral students and early career researchers in search of practical guidance to design and implement their own research projects).

For details of the full conference, please go here

Finland, 19-23 July 2010

Publishing journal articles in peer reviewed journals in English has been an increasing trend in the academia, and is nowadays a requirement for anyone wishing to have a serious career in Sociology. The skill of article writing is however not always a part of the PhD training, furthermore, there are diverse myths on what makes a good manuscript, and how to internationalize one’s research in a meaningful way.

This ESA Summer School wishes to provide a platform for both learning about this specific form of writing, and a creative and supportive environment to finalize a manuscript during the course. 

The Summer School is aimed to work as an aid for PhD students struggling with an article manuscript in progress. You are welcome to apply if you currently work with a manuscript. The text can be a manuscript in the finalizing stage before initial submission, or after a review process, working with the final editing. The requirement is that you have a full text in English to work on, a draft that can be circulated among participants by June 28th 2010.

The Summer School is co-organized by the Sociology Departments of University of Turku and University of Helsinki, and the ESA. The Summer School takes place in a beautiful setting in the archipelago of Finland, the Archipelago Research Institute of University of Turku in Seili, Nauvo. The venue provides a peaceful historic environment for writing and discussions, with sea, nature, and the midnight sun. http://www.seili.utu.fi/en/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sj%C3%A4l%C3%B6).  

ESA covers all costs for the course, the accommodation and all meals. Students will need to cover their own travel to Turku. There are low budget flights to Turku (SAS, AirBaltic, WizzAir) and Helsinki (all major companies, 2 hours by train or bus from Turku), and a ferry connection from Stockholm. Students must bring their own computers.

The deadline for applications is April 30, 2010. 20 students will be selected. In the application include following documents, all compiled to one attachment, and email it to esassseili@gmail.com This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it :

• a brief cover letter with a short description of yourself, your PhD project, and where in the process you are right now,
• a CV,
• a maximum 500 word abstract of your manuscript, with an indication of which journal you intend to submit it or have already submitted,
• If you can submit a full draft of a manuscript please do so.  

Quality of application, yet diversity in terms of gender, university, nationality and sociological themes will be addressed. The list of participants will be announced within May 2010. For further information email Elina Oinas, Director of the ESA Summer School 2010, at elina.oinas@utu.fi This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it 

Saturday 8th May 2010

Venue: Lecture Theatre Cottesbrooke 101, University of Northampton, Park Campus, Northampton NN2 7AL, UK

This conference gathers academics, journalists, researchers, policy makers and civil society organisations to discuss youth use of new media and the implication this has on identity construction, on public opinion and social change. Although their development is a recent phenomenon, new media have not only opened up new opportunities for journalism but also empowered audiences and civil society organisations with unprecedented platforms for 'free' expression and social activism around the world. New technologies are said to have reinvigorated a sense of a 'transnational public sphere' and strengthened marginalized communities and provided a platform for the voiceless. The possible consequences of such rapid developments on social and political change are not hard to imagine. The sweeping victory of US president elect Barak Obama characterised by the unprecedented outreach to marginalised communities including the youth through YouTube, Facebook, and other internet platforms is a case in point.

Aims:

This conference aims to map out the role of new media in the perceived social changes. It looks at how audiences, users, civil society organisations, political/social groups and subcultures have understood and found in these technologies the right tools and strategies to power their work sustainably.

Conference themes:

This conference covers the following areas of enquiry:

- Blogging and bloggers as citizen journalists; are bloggers making a social difference? - Satellite TV and the internet as cites of resistance/alternative media or sets of 'censored national enclosures' -E-campaigning and political/social groups - How are  activists/the youth interacting with platforms like 'YouTube', 'MySpace', 'Flicker', 'Faithtube', 'Facebook' and 'Blogging' to pursue their objectives? - Challenges of the Internet in war zones - The new media and women empowerment amongst ethnic minorities. - Youth subcultures and new media, what is going on? - In the absence of real democracy in some parts of the Arab and Muslim world is new media creating a new form of social/political capital: e-democracy? - What functions are the internet and satellite TV playing in mobilising public opinion? - What expectations and perceptions are there regarding changes in cultural and political values?

Attendance:

Participation in this conference will be open to academics, researchers, policy makers, government agencies, youth workers, students, parents and other members of the public.

Fees: £35 waged; £10 non-waged and students

To register or for any other information please contact: Ms Karin Ferngren Marketing Officer School of Social Sciences 01604 892067 Email: karin.ferngren@northampton.ac.uk Or: Dr Noureddine Miladi (Conference Coordinator) Senior Lecturer in Media & Sociology Tel: +44 (0) 1604892104 E-mail: noureddine.miladi@northampton.ac.uk

Saturday 20 March 2010, 09.30 AM until 6.00 PM, Goodenough College

A one day satellite conference of the Battle of Ideas festival: a pre-election public summit. Organised by the Institute of Ideas.

Venue: Goodenough College, Mecklenburgh Square, London WC1N 2AB.

Produced by: Dolan Cummings, convenor of the Battle for Politics and Claire Fox, director of the Institute of Ideas.

With: Dave Bowden, Joel Cohen, Timandra Harkness, Craig Fairnington, Patrick Hayes, Luke Gittos, Kevin Rooney, Geoff Kidder, Robin Walsh and Kirk Leech.

Tickets: Standard £20 waged/£15 concession; IoI members £15 waged/£10 concession; Goodenough College students/alumni £10. Tickets are available here…

Bookshop: A range of books on the themes of the conference and by speakers will be available thanks to Newham Bookshop.

Sessions: View sessions listing.

Party politics no longer seems to be about clear ideological differences, or indeed any kind of substantial debate reflecting competing visions for a better society. Nonetheless, many pressing issues remain unresolved. So though it might be tempting to write off mainstream politics as irrelevant, and to take a ‘none of the above’ position in the coming election, this can only feed the pervasive cynicism about the possibility of social change and progress. History has not gone on standby, but continues to throw up new challenges.

The institute of Ideas wants to take the opportunity of this election to re-enfranchise the electorate and put each candidate on the spot by asking them to declare where they stand on a range of key questions.  The summit will launch the IoI’s POLITICAL PLEDGE CARD and ask candidates in the 2010 UK general election if they are prepared to argue and campaign around issues of:

• FREEDOM & CIVIL LIBERTIES
• ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & INNOVATION
• ARTS, ACADEMIC RESEARCH, EDUCATION AND HEALTH-CARE AS PUBLIC GOODS

 An NCRM training event for early career researchers, led by Sue Heath, Alison Fuller, Cathy Murray and Charlie Walker, University of Southampton, Friday May 21st 2010

This one day workshop will focus on some of the methodological challenges which arise when negotiating various dimensions of difference between researchers and the young people involved in their research, alongside a consideration of the impact of the specific contexts in which research on young people’s lives might be conducted. The day will consist of presentations, workshop activities and opportunities for participants to reflect upon their own experiences. It is targeted at researchers who are relatively new to youth research, and will be particularly suited to postgraduate students and early career researchers with an interest in youth research in a variety of settings.

For full details and information on how to book a place, please follow this link:

http://www.ncrm.ac.uk/TandE/events2010/0521/index.php  

24^th – 25^th March 2010 

Radisson Blu Hotel, Bristol

http://www.ukcge.ac.uk/events/eventsarea/residential2010

Please find attached a copy of the programme for this year’s UKCGE Residential Workshop.

This event will present an opportunity, for the first time, for Graduate Deans and related staff, Research Administrators, Academic Staff and Post-Docs to meet in Special Interest Groups for discussion of issues of particular relevance to each Group. The Workshop will focus on key aspects relating to recruitment, supervision and outputs from PhD candidates, in the context of the Impact Agenda. In particular, best practice in Recruitment, Supervision, Examination and Enhancing Outputs will form the focus of small Thematic Group discussions, where delegates can share their problems and solutions in establishing effective and efficient research degree programmes.

In particular, best practice in Recruitment, Supervision and Enhancing Outputs will form the focus of small Thematic Group discussions, where delegates can share their problems and solutions in establishing effective and efficient research degree programmes. New developments in PhD structure, including the “Alternative format PhD” and “PhD by published work”, and Research Council policies on the career development of RAs and Post-Docs as members of the supervisory team, will also be covered.

Summaries of all discussions will be presented in Plenary Sessions to ensure that all delegates benefit from the collective experience shared in each Workshop Discussion group.

This Residential Workshop is intended for Graduate Deans, Research Supervisors, Research Administrators, Post-Docs and all those involved in the management of PGR student programmes.

The cost of the Residential is £380 for UKCGE Members and £420 for non-members. This price includes overnight accommodation, all meals from dinner on 24th March to lunch on 25th March and other refreshments served during the workshop. 

To download a copy of the programme for the event and to book your place please go to: http://www.ukcge.ac.uk/events/eventsarea/residential2010

There are still a few places left at the fourth seminar in the ESRC-funded series 'Rethinking Youth Cultures in the Age of Global Media'. It will be held in the Michael Young building, Meeting Rooms 3 and 4, Open University in Milton Keynes on Thursday 18th February, from 11.00 – 5.00.

If you would like to come, please reply to youthculture@ioe.ac.uk as soon as possible, letting us know whether you are interested in Session 1, 2 or both (see below).  The seminar will be in two parts.  Session 1: New directions in youth culture research. (11-1pm) This session will explore cutting edge research by new scholars in the field. It will include presentations from recently (or almost) completed PhD students about their youth culture work and how they are taking the field forwards. It will also include a 'workshop' element for current PhD students to share and discuss approaches with other students and to engage with some experienced researchers in this area, including Professor Chris Griffin, Dr Rupa Huq as well as the series organisers. If you are a PhD student working in this area and would like to attend (and /or present at) this session, we would like you to send a one-page outline of your work to be circulated in advance, covering (for instance): your name, contact details, institution, start and [proposed] end dates of study, supervisors; title of PhD; research questions and focus; methods, site of study, etc; your main influences and theoretical orientations; any key issues you would like to share with others – dilemmas, findings, etc. Please send it to Mary Jane Kehily (m.j.kehily@open.ac.uk) and Sara Bragg (s.g.bragg@open.ac.uk) before Feb 4th so that we can compile and circulate them.  Lunch (1 – 1.45pm, provided)  Session 2: Youth as a consumer market (1.45-5pm) This session brings together academics and market researchers to focus on the issue of youth as consumers. It will consider the changing ways in which youth are conceptualised as a consumer market, both in marketing practice and in market research, discuss phenomena such as branding, promotion and social media, and consider the globalised strategies of media companies.  Barbie Clarke: Family Kids and Youth Research with Young Consumers: What do we do, and how do we do it? This presentation will look at the type of clients commissioning market research with young people, consider some brief case studies, and focus on methods, contrasting old with new and considering the ethics of these, particularly on-line research. Barbie set up Family Kids and Youth (www.kidsandyouth.com) with a small team of researchers seven years ago. An international youth researcher for over 20 years, she was formerly Director of the Family division of GfK NOP. She completed her PhD in child and adolescent psychosocial development at the University of Cambridge, Faculty of Education last year, where her research has looked at early adolescents’ use of digital media.  Francesco d’Orazio: Face Group New collaborative methods in youth research Face is a research agency driven by co-creativity and specializing in real-time research, online communities, open innovation and open planning. As Research Director, Francesco D'Orazio focuses on real-time research, online communities, crowdsourcing programs and increasingly on applying gaming mechanics to the research process. He holds a PhD in new media and sociology and his research has mainly focused on immersive media. The session will look at collaborative methodologies in youth research such as co-creation, crowdsourcing, netnography, peer-to-peer and real-time research. Particularly we will look at the role of social media, game mechanics and the mobile web in engaging youth audiences in market research programs. DK: Media Snackers Youth and social media Drawing on cross-sector models and practical examples to illustrate the impact and consequences of this new fluid media landscape, DK will give an energetic and dynamic overview of how social media has changed the game. DK is the founder of MediaSnackers (http://mediasnackers.com/). MediaSnackers was a term he coined back in early 2006 whilst describing what young people were doing with media. Since that time, MediaSnackers has delivered to four continents and to a cross-sector group of clients. DK has an educational background in communications and media, plus a professional background in local government. He is also the founder of 'Social Media For Suits' (http://socialmediaforsuits.com/), a personalised mentoring for CEOs and executives who want to understand and effectively use social media, and the author of 'Zen And The Heart Of Social Media', FREE to read online till March 2010: http://bit.ly/7Ilgtg. Liz McFall: Open University Response Liz McFall is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the Open University. Her work is concerned with how markets are 'made', especially through advertising and other promotional practices. She is the author of Advertising: a cultural economy (Sage, 2004), co-editor with Paul du Gay and Simon Carter of Conduct: sociology and social worlds (Manchester University Press 2008) and co-editor of the Journal of Cultural Economy. She has published a number of articles exploring commercial promotion, of life assurance in particular, in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and is currently working on a new book exploring the role of personal finance devices in 'Covering Consumption' (forthcoming Routledge, 2011). Places are limited! If you intend to come, please reply to youthculture@ioe.ac.uk as soon as possible.