Award Submissions

All graduate students accepted to present at the GRS are eligible to submit a paper for award consideration. To qualify for an award, you must carefully follow the guidelines below.

A multidisciplinary judging panel of selected W&M faculty and experts will rank the anonymized papers. The judging panel reserves the right to adjust award categories based on the number and quality of submissions.

For questions regarding award submissions, please contact [[grs]].

Eligibility and Requirements

Eligibility: Must be a graduate student presenting at the 2025 Graduate Research Symposium (GRS). Papers already accepted for or previously printed in journals or other publications are ineligible. Paper submissions must be received by the posted deadline and must abide by all requirements and guidelines.
Submission Requirements:
- Submit a paper of no more than 1600 words (including title and abstract, but excluding citations and appendices) by the deadline: January 15, 2025, 11:59 p.m. (ET).
- Papers must be primarily the work of the submitting graduate student. Permission must be obtained from co-authors prior to submission.
- VIMS students will be judged in the Visiting categories. Graduate students must select only one field in which to compete.

Award Notification: Winners will be notified prior to the GRS and are expected to attend the Awards Ceremony.

Application Guidelines

To ensure your submission is eligible and judged correctly, adhere to the following guidelines:

Deadline: January 15, 2024, 11:59 p.m. (ET).
Anonymity: Do not include your name, co-author names, or institutional affiliation within the paper, including in footnotes.
Length: Maximum of 1600 words including title and abstract, but excluding citations and appendices.
Abstract: An abstract of 100-150 words summarizing the major points of the paper, to be included in the submission, preceding the paper itself.
Formatting:
- Use a 12-point font with 1" margins on all sides.
- Submit the text in a single column format (i.e., not in LaTeX multi-column format).
- Title and abstract must appear on the first page.
- Charts, figures, images, references, and bibliography should be placed after the last page of text as appendices. These do not count toward the word count.
File Submission:
- Save the paper as a .PDF with the filename format: judging_category_lastname_firstname (e.g., humanities_doe_john).
- Ensure the PDF is final before submission, as no corrections will be accepted after submission.
- Email the submission as an attachment to [[grs]] with your award category in the email subject line:
  - W&M A&S Humanities and Humanistic Social Sciences
  - W&M A&S Natural, Computational, and Psychological Sciences
  - Visiting Humanities and Humanistic Social Sciences
  - Visiting Natural, Computational, and Psychological Sciences

Judging Criteria

In evaluating the quality of the paper, judges will consider the following. You should use these criteria to guide you as you write your paper. Part of the challenge is to balance these criteria in the way that is most appropriate for your project.

Did the Writing Include a Clear Articulation of the Problem/Question Statement? Your paper should be sure to include a clear articulation of the problem or research question being addressed.
Does the Paper Demonstrate Originality? Your paper should demonstrate originality by achieving one or more of the following:
- Creating a new approach or methodology
- Applying an approach/methodology in a novel context
- Exploring a new topic or revisiting a familiar topic with a fresh perspective
- Utilizing new or different types of evidence or creative combinations of evidence that advance inquiry
- Offering a new theoretical direction or application
- Arriving at a new or original conclusion
Does the Paper Demonstrate Appropriate Engagement with Existing Research/Literature? Your paper should demonstrate one or more of the following:
- Depth and breadth of original research conducted, appropriate to the topic
- Demonstrated familiarity with the relevant literature, theoretical frameworks, and (inter)disciplinary debates
- Responsible and scholarly use of evidence to support the research
Were the Methods and Use of Evidence Made Explicit? Your paper should clearly articulate your methods. This can be integrated throughout the paper for disciplines where the convention might not be an explicitly labeled methods section. Discussion of methods should both address the research question and demonstrate the application of the evidence to explore/support conclusions about the research question.
Were the Argument and Evidence (Humanities) or Hypothesis and Findings (STEM) Clearly Presented? Your papers should demonstrate:
- Clear, precise, and concise writing that makes use of citation mechanisms appropriate to the discipline
- Clear, logical, and well-substantiated conclusions or arguments
- Consideration of opposing evidence and potential objections to the original argument
- Inclusion of appropriate background material and scholarly context; in humanities paper submissions, there should be an acknowledgment of how the argument is situated in the broader context of the discipline
Did the Paper Make Clear the Conclusions Drawn or Preliminary Results (for in-progress research)? Your paper should clearly state conclusions, preliminary results, or progress to date. Note that research need not be complete at time of submission. For submissions in the humanities, the progress section might be omitted or reformulated as a response to a “so-what?” question.
How Effective was the Presentation of Information (including graphics)? Your paper should demonstrate a consideration of written style, use of graphics, and references.

Further Submission Information

You will receive an email confirmation of your submission within three business days. If you do not receive a confirmation, please email grs@wm.edu.
Decisions made by the Symposium's Award Committees are final; there is no appeals process.
In the event that a paper submitted wins an award and has co-authors, the award check will be issued to the person who submits the paper. Certificates will be printed and issued to the co-authors at the Awards Ceremony.
You may apply again in future years. However, William & Mary's Honor Code prohibits students from submitting the same paper twice for award consideration. Work that is created as a result of the original submission or builds upon its theory, method, etc. may be submitted in subsequent years. This usually means that the original work has had a period of at least a year for substantial alteration and development so that it reflects on-going scholarship.
Award paper submissions that do not follow all of the above guidelines or are submitted after the deadline will not be considered or acknowledged.