The American Anthropological Association is pleased to announce the annual competition for the David M. Schneider Award for an original graduate student essay. Throughout his life, David Schneider's work on kinship, cultural theory, and American culture was provocative and iconoclastic. The $1,000 award will be given in recognition of work that treats one or more of these topics in a fresh and innovative fashion. The presentation of the award will take place at the Annual Meeting of the American Anthropological Association. The winning essay will be announced in Anthropology News and will be sent to Cultural Anthropology, a journal that David Schneider helped to found, to be reviewed for publication. View a list of previous winners here.
Eligibility:
- Authors must be graduate students in anthropology who have been admitted to candidacy for, but have not yet received, their PhD
- Essays may be entered into competition by either authors or their dissertation advisors.
- Awardees must be members of the AAA.
Application materials should be limited to:
- An unpublished essay no more than 30 pages in length (double spaced, 12 point font, inclusive of notes and bibliography). The essay need not necessarily use Schneider's ethnographic or theoretical writings but it should exhibit an innovative approach to one or more of the topics-kinship, cultural theory, or American culture-that were central to his work.
- A two-page CV that includes contact information through December 2015.
- A one-page abstract that clearly states the argument of your essay, its relevance to the topics of kinship, cultural theory, and/or American culture, and the key innovations it advances.
- A brief letter from your dissertation advisor, director of graduate studies, or department chair certifying that you have been admitted to candidacy for the PhD and will not yet have received the PhD
Please visit our site after the new year for detailed information on our new awards submission process.
Previous Winners
