The Outstanding Publication Award
This award is presented on a bi-annual basis. The purpose of this award is to bestow recognition on a colleague or colleagues for a specific publication (journal article, book, or book chapter) judged as making a substantial contribution to the literature and/or practice of graduate education. Publications may have more than one author. A substantial contribution is defined as scholarship that extensively revises our knowledge and understanding of a particular problem in the study of graduate education or looks at it in a new way. It may also be an interdisciplinary effort that identifies a problem new to the community of scholars in higher education.
Selection Criteria
The Outstanding Publication Award is presented to the individual or individuals who meet the following criteria as approved by the SRA and Council:
Each submission will be rated (scored) on a scale of 1 – 5 against each of the five criteria below
Significance: The issues presented are not obvious and trivial, but interesting, creditable and natural and not chosen because they easy to deal with.
Clarity: Clearly written, content accessible and engaging for a non-specialist audience.
Quality: Scientific and methodological soundness of the paper and inclusion of details that allow checking the accuracy of the reflections, results, and citations.
Originality: Not necessarily the generation of new knowledge, although that would be novel, but rather the uniqueness of the combination of the issues, techniques, and methods in their application to a certain domain.
Presentation: Well-structured with a coherent and consistent methodological order that ensures intelligibility of what is being said and a logical conclusion.
Application Process
The process for determining the individual(s) deserving of the Outstanding Publication Award is as follows:
1. The publication must have been published within the previous two years. Articles and books published between October 1, 2018, and September 30, 2019, will be considered for the 2020 award.
2. Submissions must be made to the chair of the Outstanding Publication Award committee. Papers and chapters must be submitted electronically in a PDF format.
3. In any one year, authors may submit no more than two of their single- or co-authored papers.
4. Nominations must be received by 5 pm US Pacific Time by September 25 , 2020. Please submit nominations to Outstanding Publication Award, via email at admin@sra.so
5. Self-nominations are welcome.
6. Each submission must include:
a. The paper to be considered:
– For journal articles, one copy clearly indicating the journal in which it was published; issue number and date.
– For chapters, one copy clearly indicating the title of the volume in which it was published; book editors; publishers; place of paper; ISBN number; date of publication
b. Nominator: Name and contact information for person submitting the nomination.
c. A complete citation of the author(s) and the paper nominated using APA format.
d. Name and contact information of the first author.
e. A statement about what, in your opinion, makes this paper outstanding. The contribution that this paper has made or you anticipate that it will make to the literature in the field of graduate education; its theoretical significance; the contribution this paper has made to improving practice or to understanding practice. The statement should be no longer than 250 words and also submitted in a PDF format with your name and email in the header.
The awardee(s) will be notified by the second week of November and will be invited to present their work at the SRA annual meeting. The name(s) of the awardee(s) will be formally announced at the “Somali Researchers Association (SRA) ” Annual Meeting. They will also be presented a plaque in honor of the award. Recipients are strongly encouraged to attend the annual meeting to receive the award and present their paper to the “Somali Researchers Association (SRA) ” members.