The Annual Doctoral Consortium, hosted by the Southern Management Association (SMA), will be held at the SMA convention site, Hyatt Regency, Savannah, Georgia, on Wednesday, November 9, 2011.

The Consortium is a daylong program designed to help students who are in the early stages of their doctoral programs.  The goals of the Consortium include: (1) assisting students to gain a better understanding of key factors underlying faculty success in research, teaching, and service; and (2) assisting students to network and begin the process of integrating themselves into the profession.
As in years past, the program will feature nationally recognized scholars who will lead sessions discussing research, teaching, and professional service.  Roundtable sessions will cover career management and related topics.  In addition, there will be open discussions focusing on how to maximize the benefits received from one’s doctoral training.

The Consortium will award $500 stipends to invited participants.  In addition, breakfast and lunch the day of the Consortium will be provided, courtesy of SMA.  If that is not enough encouragement to attend, past participants have had this to say about their SMA Consortium experiences:

•  “I have been to other consortia and this one was much more helpful!”
• “It was interesting and the presenters were well chosen. The social aspect was the best for me because I knew so few people in the field before attending.”
• “I thought it was well organized and covered all of the major topics. I was quite pleased to attend, and to get all the info on the job market process was helpful.”
• “I really enjoyed the doctoral consortium. It was very informative and full of information that is, and will be, of great use. I hope that I have not been spoiled by attending such a great consortium, and attending future consortia at other conferences may not live up to what you did at SMA!”

Due to the popularity of the Doctoral Consortium, there is a September 1, 2011 registration deadline. All applicants must submit (a) a registration form that is available for download at http://southernmanagement.org/meetings/2011/SMA2011DoctoralConsortium.doc, (b) a recommendation letter from a member of their faculty, and (c) a copy of their vita. (If selected to attend, the vita will be included in the notebook distributed to all participants to facilitate networking.)  Preference will be given to students in the first or second year of their doctoral program and to students who have not previously attended an SMA Doctoral Consortium.  Multiple students from one program may be admitted if space is available.  To facilitate this process, where there are multiple applicants from a single program, the program must rank order applicants for selection to the consortium.