Dissertation Award

The Industry Studies Association (ISA) invites nominations for its annual dissertation award competition for 2025, to be awarded at the 2026 Annual Conference. The goal of the award is to recognize and reward outstanding doctoral research in the area of industry studies. Industry studies research includes research that demonstrates significant personal investment in developing an understanding of the markets, firms, and institutions of an industry and frequently involves the integration of direct observation with appropriate theory and analysis. The Industry Studies Association is dedicated to advancing academic research that is grounded in a deep knowledge of a particular industry or industries. The award is accompanied by a $500 honorarium for first prize and a $250 honorarium for the runner up. The submission deadline is January 16, 2026.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the competition candidates must have completed a doctoral dissertation in economics, management, engineering, political science, sociology, or in a related or interdisciplinary field between August 1, 2024 and December 31, 2025. Candidates must have successfully defended their dissertations and received the final approval and all required sign-offs on their dissertation document by December 31, 2025.

Nomination & Selection Process

Normally the Industry Studies Association expects candidates to be nominated by their dissertation supervisors, although nominations by other members of the candidate's committee will be considered. The Industry Studies Association welcomes nominations from members; however, candidates and nominators are not required to have any prior relationship with the ISA. Direct applications are not accepted. 

Nominees must submit:

  1. An extended abstract of the dissertation, not to exceed five pages (all inclusive, except for the cover page; at least 1.5 spacing; at least 11 point font (Calibri, Times New Roman, or Arial); and 1 inch margins (minimum).
  2. The nominee's current vita.
  3. Nomination form (click here) completed by the nominator (typically the dissertation advisor).
  4. A nomination letter that supports the submission and states the advisor's assessment of why the thesis is worthy of the award. 

Submission deadline is January 16, 2026.

Nominations will be reviewed by a distinguished committee of industry studies scholars. Award recipients will be notified in the spring of 2026. Authors of the first and second place papers will be invited to present their work in a special panel session at the 2026 Industry Studies Annual Conference, June 3-5, 2026, at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

Nomination Form
Submission Form
2025 Award Winners