This is funding to support travel for a diverse group of U.S. PhD students and distinguished faculty mentors to participate in a doctoral colloquium (workshop) on research on information science that will be co-located with the 2013 iConference to be hosted by the University of North Texas in Fort Worth on February 11-15. The iConferences, the annual meetings of the iSchool community, are a leading forum that brings together faculty, students, research staff, and industry practitoners with a common interest in supporting and augmenting human engagement with information and technology. Open to broad participation, the iConferences have been successful in building a sense of community around the information field, bringing together people who otherwise might rarely interact with one another, and helping them share findings and exchange views relating to their interdisciplinary research. More information about the iConference may be found online at www.ischools.org/iConference13/participation,
The 2013 iConference Doctoral Colloquium, which will take place on February 15, 2013 (the final day of the iConference), will be a research-focused meeting of about 25 selected Ph.D. candidates studying all aspects of information science (IS), along with approximately 10 distinguished mentors. The primary objective of the Doctoral Colloquium is to help train the next generation of information science researchers. To this end, it will provide the student participants with an environment in which they can share and discuss their goals, methods and results at an early stage of their research. By participating in the doctoral colloquium, students will gain feedback on their work both from the mentors and from other students, which should allow them to enhance their research. Students will also develop a better understanding of the different research communities engaged in the study of information science, and learn how to position their work within the IS community. In addition, the colloquium will provide students with opportunities to make new professional connections beyond their own disciplines.
Broader Impacts: The iConference doctoral colloquia traditionally bring together the best of the next generation of researchers in information science and related areas, allowing them to create a social network both among themselves and with senior researchers at a critical stage in their professional development. Participation is encouraged from a broad range of relevant disciplines and approaches, thereby broadening attendees' perspectives on their topics of study and promoting advancement of the field. No more than one student will be accepted from any given institution, and priority will be given to students who have not previously attended an iConference Doctoral Colloquium. The organizers will proactively work to include women and minority representation among the student participants to the extent possible. As a consequence of these steps, the student and faculty participants will constitute a diverse group across a variety of dimensions, which will help broaden the students' horizons to the future benefit of the field.
In February 2013, the iSchools Caucus held its eighth iConference, hosted this year by the University of North Texas at Fort Worth, Texas. The iConference brings together faculty, students, research staff, and industry researchers who share an interest in supporting and augmenting human engagements with information and technology. As at previous iConferences, a research colloquium of promising doctoral students and distinguished research faculty was held in conjunction with the event. The goals of the 2013 Doctoral Colloquium were to: Build a cohort of new researchers who will have a network of colleagues spread out across the world. Illustrate the interrelationship and diversity of the information field. Help new researchers address the challenges and opportunities of interdisciplinarity, and what it implies for undertaking research, collaborating, publishing, explaining one’s work to diverse audiences, and situating oneself within organizations and departments. Guide the work of the new researchers by having the experts in the research field give advice. Make it possible for promising new entrants in the field to attend the Conference. Make the new entrants’ experience at the Conference an enjoyable and rewarding one, encouraging them to return and submit papers, panels, posters, etc. to future conferences. Help inform faculty about the concerns of doctoral students by creating a supportive environment for discussion. Explore the complexities of the job market. Currently it can be difficult to secure a position, even though our graduates have been very successful. It is important that new researchers learn how to market themselves and explain the skills and approaches that they bring. Information Schools are not in the business of simply creating Ph.D.’s to be hired by other iSchools. Our graduates also gain positions in other departments, in corporate research laboratories and in professional information management positions. Understanding the complexity and diversity of the hiring market and how to navigate it is a critical skill. Help students figure out their places in the profession. The iConference is notable for its collaborative and information-sharing nature. It is not just a place to present, but a place to share ideas and start up conversations that can lead to grant proposals and joint teaching and research initiatives. The doctoral colloquium serves as a way to help students to make a transition from a junior position to a peer who participates in this collaborative activity. Based on the feedback received from participants in the form of a survey, these goals were largely accomplished at the Doctoral Colloquium 2013.
