GAPS dissertation award information
The GAPS Dissertation Award is granted once every two years and recognizes an outstanding doctoral thesis that advances and expands in an exceptional manner the analytical and/or theoretical approach to Anglophone literatures around the world, to the study of varieties of English, to postcolonial didactics, or to other postcolonial cultural forms, practices, and media.
The award is endowed with € 2,000 and can be split among several doctoral theses. It will be awarded for the seventh time at the annual convention of GAPS in May 2026. In addition to the monetary prize, the award includes expenses for travel to the conference (via train, economy class), hotel accommodation for the night of the award ceremony, and the conference fee for the annual GAPS conference. After consultation with the Series Editors, the prize winner(s) will be given the opportunity to publish their dissertation in the Association’s publication series.
Who can nominate candidates for the award?
Doctoral advisors who are members of GAPS can nominate candidates for the award. Submissions by the candidates themselves are also possible, provided that they are themselves members of GAPS. Eligible for submission are excellent dissertations in the field of Anglophone postcolonial studies that were completed in the years 2024 and 2025 (this refers to the date of the last doctoral examination).
The next entry deadline for nominations is 1 December 2025. Dissertation projects completed between 1 and 31 December 2025 can be nominated until 5 January 2026.
How does the nomination process work?
Nominations will be addressed to the GAPS board of directors, which will forward them to the jury members. A nomination includes:
- a copy of the doctoral thesis and a copy of the Ph.D. certificate or a confirmation of the completion of the doctoral examinations from the dean’s office,
- an academic c.v. of the nominee together with a list of publications,
- the advisors’ reports,
- a short summary of the doctoral thesis in English (1,000 words).
All documents should be submitted by e-mail to the president of GAPS:
Prof. Dr. Timo Müller
University of Konstanz
president(at)g-a-p-s.net