Call for Graduate Student Researcher Applications
The Center for the Study of Women|Barbra Streisand Center (CSW|Streisand Center) is accepting applications for a 25–50% Graduate Student Researcher (GSR) from July 1, 2023 – March 31, 2024, with potential for renewal for spring quarter. The GSR’s main responsibility will be to plan the 2024 Thinking Gender Conference but may be assigned other research-related duties depending on the needs of the center.
Thinking Gender is an annual public conference that draws scholars from across disciplines – humanities, social sciences, life sciences, arts, law, education, health sciences, and public policy, among others – to share research on women, sexuality, and gender. Thinking Gender 2024 (TG24) is the 34th year of the conference. Please visit our website to find more information on past Thinking Gender conferences.
For TG24, the applicant for the coordinator position is asked to propose a conference topic. The topic should be conceived broadly and interdisciplinarily to provide opportunities for graduate students from a variety of fields to submit. Any social justice feminist topic about women, sexuality, and gender will be accepted, with specific interest in topics pertaining to feminist environmentalism or graduate student labor organizing within the context of larger labor movements. Applicants are encouraged to submit topics that do not overlap too closely with recent Thinking Gender conferences. You may find the themes of past conferences on our website.
Successful candidates will have strong research and/or activist expertise related to the theme they propose.
The selected applicant will collaborate with CSW|Streisand Center faculty and staff in refining the conference theme and developing a program that makes a significant contribution to the interdisciplinary areas of focus.
ELIGIBILITY AND COMPENSATION
The GSR must be registered as a full-time student (enrolled in a minimum of 12 units) during the academic year and maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 throughout the duration of the appointment.
This GSR position will be at 25–50% time from July 1, 2023 – March 31, 2024, with potential for renewal for spring quarter. The GSR step is dependent on level of experience and advancement to candidacy status. Fee remissions will be included. The conference will take place in late winter 2024.
RESPONSIBILITIES
The position is hybrid and will involve both remote and in-person tasks. Under the supervision of the CSW|Streisand Center Program and Research Developer, the GSR will:
- Plan and oversee an interdisciplinary conference
- Develop conference theme
- Draft conference call for abstracts
- Develop and implement plans that will aid the conference goal of serving graduate students and contributing to feminist research
- Head the conference selection and program committee
- Curate conference panels and presentations
- Review and critique submissions
- Lead and prepare agendas for conference planning meetings
- Write and prepare conference documents, including but not limited to calls for submissions, publicity materials, manuals, etc.
- Build and engage with a network of prominent scholars and administrators to create an interdisciplinary program
- Develop cross-campus fundraising strategies and hone academic development skills
- Spearhead outreach initiatives
- Write blogs and outreach material for an academic audience
QUALIFICATIONS
- Registered UCLA graduate student in the 2023–2024 academic year
- Experience organizing or participating in research conferences
- Demonstrated ability to lead networking, fundraising, and outreach initiatives
- Demonstrated ability to work as part of a team and to collaborate during meetings and discussions
- Strong organizational skills, including:
- Demonstrated ability to set and meet deadlines and priorities
- Ability to organize and present information effectively and concisely
- Ability to set and maintain a reliable work schedule
- Coordinator must be available on campus for all conference dates and for a higher workload during the crucial weeks preceding the conference
- Research knowledge within the proposed subject area as demonstrated by ongoing or completed research projects, conference presentations, and/or publications
- Research interests compatible with CSW|Streisand Center’s core research on women, sexuality, and gender
We encourage students in any discipline to apply.
APPLICATION MATERIALS
The following materials are required when submitting your application through the online application system:
- Cover Letter:
a. Describe your proposed topic in detail; the topic should be conceived broadly and with interdisciplinarity in mind so that it can provide opportunities for graduate students from a variety of fields to submit.
b. Explain the intellectual/political importance of your proposed topic for contemporary conversations on women, gender, and/or sexuality.
c. Outline how your research interests relate to the theme you are proposing.
d. Propose potential sessions you would incorporate (presentations, workshops, etc.) that would both support the theme and serve the professional and research development needs of graduate students (3 pages maximum). - CV
- Unofficial UCLA Transcript (with most recent coursework and grades)
- List of References: Provide at least two references (name, title, contact information, relation to applicant), one of whom must be a UCLA faculty member. We advise that references should be able to comment on your research aptitude (particularly as it relates to the theme you are proposing), organizational skills, and capacity to oversee the production of a conference.
If selected for an interview, please be prepared to suggest and discuss your proposed conference theme, possible sessions related to the theme, potential keynote speakers, outreach and fundraising strategies, and formats for the conference.
SUBMISSION DETAILS AND DEADLINE
Please submit your application online via Submittable.
DEADLINE: MONDAY, APRIL 24, 2023, at 11:59 PM.
