Prediction markets are designed to aggregate the information of many individuals to forecast future events. These markets provide participants with an incentive to seek information and a forum for interaction, making markets a promising tool to motivate student learning. We carried out a quasi-experiment in an introductory political science class…

Despite the size and growth of political science and sociology relative to other disciplines, political science and sociology graduate students have received a declining share of funding for dissertation field research in recent years. Specifically, political science and sociology students are losing out to competitive applicants from…

Discusses Emory University's (Georgia) Teaching Assistant Training and Teaching Opportunity (TATTO) program, which consists of five components: Graduate School Course, Departmental Course, Teaching Assistantship, Teaching Associateship, and Dean's Teaching Fellowship. Considers the strengths and problems of TATTO. Lists the aspects of TATTO worth…

Succinctly summarizes considerations that should be taken into account when choosing a dissertation topic. These include resonance with organizational culture, contribution to the discipline, assistance in a job search, and tractability. Tractability (the ability to produce a finished product) combines the components of scope, clarity of problem,…

Describes the Graduate Mentor Program at the University of California Los Angeles. Discusses the importance of both faculty and graduate student mentors in recruiting talented minority students into graduate study of political science. Emphasizes minority students' lack of knowledge about graduate school, the graduate application process, and the…

Investigates the extent to which political-science graduate students begin engaging in professional activities while in school. Examines the nature and extent of teaching preparation, the extent of institutional encouragement to participate in conferences, and the rate of submission of manuscripts to scholarly journals. Provides tables of…

Examines efforts made in recent years to introduce ethics into the curricula of graduate studies programs in public affairs and administration. The questionnaire asked a broad series of questions eliciting both quantitative (program size, organizational structure) and qualitative information (educational goals). Includes statistical and tabular…