In addition to hosting distinguished visiting professors and its annual conference, the Graduate Center for Literary Research (GCLR) also actively supports graduate student writing and research by conducting roundtables for student work. These GCLR roundtable workshops, comprised of graduate students from across the humanities, offer selected graduate students a prime opportunity for extended feedback from an interdisciplinary perspective as well as possible financial support for conference travel. In light of travel and conference restrictions due to Covid-19, travel funds will be held for later distribution, when needed.
Graduate students are eligible to present in the Roundtable up to two times throughout their graduate career at UCSB. Eligible papers for the roundtable workshops will vary in form, content, and disciplinary approach but should follow MLA style as set out in the most recent edition of the MLA Handbook. Papers not conforming to MLA style may be asked to consider revision before circulation during the workshop; there are no strict parameters or themes, although we do strongly encourage submissions that consider the theme of our annual conference. Works-in-progress, such as field exam research and dissertation chapters, will also be considered, and are encouraged!
Finalists from the roundtable workshops will also be invited to adapt their work into a spotlight article to be published in the annual GCLR responsive journal Exchanges. For more information on the roundtable workshops, please visit our Roundtables and Travel Grants page.
If you are interested in presenting your work at a future roundtable workshop, please check back during Winter 2024. All graduate students in the Humanities are encouraged to apply as well as attend to support the finalists!
2022-2023 Roundtable Workshops:
Our Fall Roundtable was held on November 4th, 2022. The three finalists, Maxximilian Seijo (Comparative Literature, UCSB), Trinankur Banerjee (Department of Film & Media Studies, UCSB), and Anna Schewelew (Comparative Literature, UCSB), presented their 15-20 minute "papers-in-progress" session which was co-moderated by Kate Saubestre.
Our Winter Roundtable was held on February 13th. The two finalist, along with their paper topics, included: Richard Nedjat-Haiem (C-Lit, UCSB), with “Pluri-Arabism: How the Gulf is Shaping a New Pan-Arab Cultural Identity” and Diandian Zeng (Music, UCSB) with “Sonic Instructions and Organized Bodies: A Study of Chinese Radio Calisthenics”. The presentations were followed with a Q&A and constructive suggestions.