Section awards are presented during the APSA annual meeting awards ceremony. To learn more about any award listed, contact the award committee chair for the award.

All section 36. Human Rights awards to-date »

The Human Rights Section offers annual awards for Best Paper, Best Dissertation, Best Book, and Distinguished Scholar in Human Rights. Nominations for all awards should be submitted to all members of a committee by May 1, 2023. Supporting material may be attached in electronic form for best paper and distinguished scholar, electronic or hard copy for best dissertation and best book although best book committee members may prefer a hard copy.  

Best Book Award

This competition is open to all books on human rights written by a political scientist and published in the previous two years. Please send one hard copy or pdf of the book to each member of the award committee.   

Nomination instructions: Email members directly to determine preferred form – pdf or hard copy of book – and address during COVID-19. Deadline for nominations: May 1, 2023

Award Committee

Distinguished Scholar Award

Given every three years to a section member who has made a major contribution to the advancement of human rights scholarship and to our community through their research, teaching, mentoring of others, creation of opportunities for exchange and collaboration among scholars, or other means. 
Distinguished scholars will: 
(1)    Have records of scholarly excellence, as demonstrated in their publications, grants, pedagogical accomplishments, and/or outreach and engagement efforts; 
(2)    Have been active participants in the section, now or in the past, and have contributed to the maintenance of our scholarly community in some meaningful way (e.g., in a leadership or mentoring role, as an active panel or workshop participant, etc.); 
(3)    Be at least 10 years from the date of their Ph.D. degrees.
Nomination procedure. Nomination packages should include a letter of nomination describing how the nominee meets the award criteria, a copy of the nominee’s full cv, and letters from up to four people in support of the nomination. Self-nominations are not accepted. The committee will consider all nominations but reserves the right not to make an award if no nominees fulfill the criteria.  The committee acknowledges that the division of academic labor remains deeply gendered, racialized, and hierarchical, including with respect to institutional type and type of academic appointment or affiliation. We therefore especially invite nominations of scholars and scholar-activists who have made significant contributions to our field and profession in ways that work to challenge and eradicate these forms of domination.

Deadline for nominations: May 1, 2025

Award Committee

Best Dissertation Award

Dissertation making the greatest contribution to the field of human rights in the previous calendar year. Please send a copy to each member of the committee. Nomination Instructions: Send copies of the nominated dissertation and a letter of support from the dissertation Chair, which should specify the contribution of the work to the field of human rights within no more than 1000 words, to ALL members of the Dissertation Award Committee by email. Dissertation may be pdf or hard copy. Please check with award committee members for their preference. 

Deadline for nominations: May 1, 2023

Award Committee

Best Paper Award

This award recognizes the best paper presented on a Human Rights Section Panel at the APSA Annual Meeting. 
Nomination procedures: Submit nominations, including a copy of the paper, to all members of the committee via email

Deadline for nominations: May 1, 2023

Award Committee