In October 2022, the Cato Institute will host our fifth annual Junior Scholars Symposium (JSS), a paper workshop for graduate students on topics broadly related to international security and national security policy.

Junior Scholars Symposium provides participants a unique opportunity to receive feedback on their research in progress from other graduate students and Cato scholars.

Benefits

• Participants will receive a stipend of $500
• if the workshop is held in person, participants will instead have reasonable travel and accommodation costs covered.

Eligibility

• Candidates should have a background in political science, history, public policy, or a related field
• they must have completed at least one year of graduate study in a Ph.D. program by the time of the workshop.

Proposal Topics

Paper topics may include but are not limited to:

• U.S. foreign policy
• grand strategy
• civil‐​military relations
• alliances and security institutions
• diplomatic history
• emerging technology
• arms control
• nuclear deterrence

Papers that link national security to global health, trade, political economy, or immigration are also welcome.

What will happen in the Program?

Participants should produce an original paper of journal-article length.

The workshop will focus on paper presentations, discussion, and suggestions for improvement.

Moreover, the authors will go on to seek publication in external journals or build upon this research as they move toward the dissertation phase of their studies.

Participants are particularly expected to highlight the policy relevance of their work. In keeping with the Cato Institute’s commitment to moving U.S. foreign policy towards prudence and restraint, the policy implications of papers should be broadly compatible with a pragmatic realist approach to foreign policy.

How to Apply?

• To apply, submit an abstract of no more than 500 words to juniorscholars@​cato.​org.
• The abstract should detail your proposed research project and be accompanied by a CV.
• Finally, all candidates will be notified of the status of their application by May 20^th, and their papers will be due on September 30^th.