Back in person after 3 years!
2023 National Student Research Conference
Over Presidents’ Day Weekend, Pi Sigma Alpha welcomed over 450 attendees in person at George Washington University in Washington, DC and virtually for the 10th Annual National Student Research Conference. Undergraduate presenters, graduate student discussants, and faculty chairs came from 137 colleges and universities across the country. This was the first time the conference was hosted primarily in-person since 2020.
The event kicked off with a Career “Ask-Me-Anything” reception on Friday evening. Participants had the opportunity to connect with professionals in various fields to learn more about career paths for political science majors.
Saturday and early Sunday featured 217 research presentations across 55 panels by Pi Sigma Alpha undergraduate student members from across the United States. Graduate student discussants offered detailed feedback on the participants’ work, enabling students to think beyond the paper in its current form and understand how to build on it further and possibly submit it for publication.
This year’s keynote discussion, “Finding a Meaningful Career in Political Science and Public Policy”, featured Dr. Yesim Sayin, the founding Executive Director of the D.C. Policy Center. You can view the recording of the keynote address here.
On Saturday evening, students had the opportunity to meet with representatives from over a dozen graduate programs in political science and public policy at the Graduate School Reception.
Pi Sigma Alpha is home to more than 800 chapters, and the diversity of those chapters was on display at the conference. Attendees from major research institutions as well as small liberal arts colleges took part in the event. A record number of students who attend minority-serving institutions presented this year.
Since Pi Sigma Alpha introduced the National Student Research Conference in 2014, thousands of students have attended and presented their research. We look forward to next year’s event!
If you have questions, contact the Pi Sigma Alpha national office office@pisigmaalpha.org
“This conference was such a refreshing and exciting experience and gave me so much optimism seeing what other students are doing. It goes to show that Political Science opens so many doors to change and innovation, and Pi Sigma Alpha is an incubator for it all!” – 2023 undergraduate presenter
This is a wonderful experience for any undergraduate student. Having the opportunity to network with other talented students and faculty from around the country whilst also getting feedback on their original research is incredibly valuable. And in our nation’s capital? What better place to be a political science major? – 2023 faculty chair
This conference allowed me to network with students from across the nation and learn so much about different career paths. I encourage other students to apply and to attend for the years to come! – 2023 undergraduate presenter
All photos by Mariah Miranda Photography | http://www.mariahmiranda.com/