Undergraduate Student Paper Competition

Eligibility & Submission Guidelines | Rubric | Paper Competition Flyer

2024 Paper Competition Winners | Past Paper Competition Winners

PURPOSE

Each year Alpha Kappa Delta sponsors an undergraduate student paper competition. Winners are eligible to win cash prizes and travel money to attend the American Sociological Association annual conference. First place winners are eligible to have their papers published in Sociological Inquiry should they choose to submit them.

AWARDS

First Place Winner: $500 and up to $1,000 in travel expenses to attend the 2025 annual meeting of the American Sociological Association. First-place winners have the chance to be published in the Sociological Inquiry journal if authors choose to submit them. If submitted for publication, members of the Editorial Board of Sociological Inquiry will assist with editing. If published in the journal, the paper will list the institution the author attended when the paper was written.

Second Place Winner: $250 and up to $1,000 in travel expenses to attend the 2025 annual meeting of the American Sociological Association.

Third Place Winner: $100 and up to $1,000 in travel expenses to attend the 2025 annual meeting of the American Sociological Association.

Authors of all prizewinning papers will receive one-year extensions of their subscriptions to Sociological Inquiry.

WINNERS AND ASA

Winners are strongly encouraged to attend the 2025 annual meeting of the American Sociological Association with travel support from Alpha Kappa Delta. In order to receive the travel support portion of the award, paper winners must attend the AKD Awards Ceremony and Distinguished Lecture.

WINNERS AND ASA HONORS PROGRAM

The American Sociological Association (ASA) has reserved slots in the 2025 ASA Honors Program for first, second, and third place winners of the undergraduate student paper competition. All paper contest winners are strongly encouraged to participate in the Honors Program — it is a great opportunity for travel, scholarship, professional development, and networking.

CURRENT DEADLINE:

March 1, 2025

ELIGIBILITY

  • The author must be a current member of Alpha Kappa Delta
  • The paper must have been written while the author was enrolled as an undergraduate student during at least one term of the 2024 calendar year (January 1, 2024 through December 31, 2024)
  • Students do not have to be involved with chapter activities
  • Papers must be single-authored
  • No student may author more than one paper entered in the competition
  • Previous winners are not eligible to submit to the Undergraduate Paper Competition again
  • The paper cannot have been previously published or be currently under consideration by a professional journal
  • All submissions must be received by the deadline via a submission form

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

  • Must meet eligibility requirements (see ‘eligibility’ above)
  • A cover letter from a sociology member who is an active member of AKD and serving as the Chapter Representative. This person must affirm:
    • the author’s name
    • the author’s current membership status in Alpha Kappa Delta
    • the year the paper was completed
    • and the institution the author attended at the time the paper was completed
  • The paper must have sociological content and focus, but may be empirical, theoretical, or a critical review of the literature
  • An abstract of 100-150 words must summarize the major points of the paper (please include on submitted paper)
  • The paper may not exceed 35 double-spaced pages using MS-Word, Calibri 11-point OR Times New Roman 12-point font/type, with standard 1-inch margins, including tables, appendices, and references. For a detailed statement on format and requirements consult the inside cover of the Official Journal of Alpha Kappa Delta, Sociological Inquiry.
  • The author’s name should not appear anywhere in the title page, abstract, or paper

SUBMISSION

To be entered into the Undergraduate Paper Competition, fill out the submission form here: https://forms.gle/Qt16XMNsR1o7TfaQ6

  • Be sure to upload the correct paper and that no identifying information is located anywhere on it
  • The Chapter Representative cover letter may be uploaded using this form – or – it may be sent by email to akd@alphakappadelta.org directly from the Chapter Representative or student author

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The Executive Office will acknowledge the submission in two ways:

  1. The office staff will reply to the emailed submission indicating receipt.
  2. The Executive Director will send an email to the authors and faculty sponsors of prizewinning papers around April 1. All others will be notified in a timely manner.