Political Science Graduate Student Work-in-Progress Group

The goal of the Graduate Student Work in Progress Group is to provide a forum for graduate students in political science and related fields to present their work in a structured and collaborative setting. Presenters have included first and second year students receiving feedback on seminar papers for revision, post-generals students preparing for dissertation colloquia, and senior graduate students preparing for conferences, second colloquia, dissertation defenses, and the job market. With over 20 meetings each year, students of all years in the Political Science Department received detailed and specific feedback on their projects in a constructive, mutually supportive environment. Whereas other working groups are focused on subfield-specific topics, the Graduate Student Work in Progress Group is explicitly intended to bring graduate students of all interests, background, and experience together in a single forum. The result is not just better individual projects, but the continued growth of the Political Science community at MIT outside the classroom.