Canadian Women's Studies Association
L'association canadienne des études sur les femmes

GRADUATE ESSAY COMPETITION

In 2004, the CWSA/ACEF introduced a graduate and undergraduate essay competition. The graduate essay competition is open to graduate students in Women’s Studies graduate courses, Women’s Studies graduate programs, and Women’s Studies streams in Interdisciplinary Graduate Programs - with preference given to graduate students in Women’s Studies graduate programs/courses. Essays are anonymously reviewed by a committee of approximately 3-5 people, and assessed using the following criteria:

i) Was a relevant argument set out in the paper? If so, was the argument fully developed throughout the paper?

ii) Were other studies/reports/research referred to? In other words, was there a detailed analysis conducted on the issue?

iii) Was this paper unique in some way? Was there any evidence of originality/creativity?

iv) Was the writing style at an acceptable level? Were there any grammatical errors or spelling errors? Did the paper flow?

v) Did I learn something from reading this paper?

vi) Was this paper relevant to Women’s Studies?

Winners receive a monetary prize of $100.00, a complimentary one-year membership to the Association, and are invited to read their papers during the Awards ceremony at the annual conference (up to $500.00 is available to help defray travel costs). Honorable mention receives a monetary prize of $50.00

CALL FOR NOMINATIONS for 2011-12 COMPETITION

The call for nominations for the graduate essay prize is coming soon. A notice to all members will be sent out when it is available.


PREVIOUS WINNERS

2010-11: University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB

First Place Essay Prize

Alex Rowlson, “’Negotiated Nuptials’: A Transnational Analysis of the International Marriage Broker Industry and the Russian ‘Mail-Order Bride’” (Women’s and Gender Studies, University of Toronto).


2009-10: Concordia University, Montreal, QC

First Place Essay Prize

Katherine Mazurok, “The Metaphoric Middle (Im)Passage: Beauty and National L/Anguish” (Queen's University)


2008-09: Carleton University, Ottawa, ON

First Place Essay Prize

not awarded this year


2007-08: University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC

First Place Essay Prize

Sonja Boon, "Last Rites, Last Rights: Corporeal Abjection as Autobiographical Performance in Suzanne Curchod Necker's Des inhumations précipitées (1790)" (Simon Fraser University; now at Memorial University)


2006-07: University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK

First Place Essay Prize

not awarded this year


2005-06: York University

First Place Essay Prize

Tina Virmani, "Gender, Nationalism, and the Regulation of Globalization in India" (York University)


2004-5: University of Western Ontario, London, ON

First Place Essay Prize

Katie Larsen, "Emancipatory Strategies: Using Postmodernism and Standpoint Theory to Redefine Feminist Methodology" (University of Toronto)