Allen G. Marr Prize Distinguished Dissertation Award

HISTORY AND PURPOSE

In 1989, the Allen G. Marr Prize was established in honor of Allen G. (Jerry) Marr's 20-year contribution as Dean of Graduate Studies and Research and his commitment to the highest standards of scholarship and professional ethics.

A $500 annual prize is awarded by the Office of Graduate Studies at the Graduate Commencement Ceremony to a present or past UC Davis doctoral student in honor of superior dissertation work. The prize is patterned after the Council of Graduate Schools/University Microfilms International (CGS/UMI) Distinguished Dissertation Award (See the "Nomination Procedure" information below). Each year the competition is in different discipline areas.

The recipient of the Allen G. Marr Prize, if eligible, will be the campus's nominee for the CGS/UMI award consisting of an honorarium of $2,000 and a certificate of citation.

NOMINATION PROCEDURE

Eligibility:
The nominee's effective date of degree award, or the completion of doctoral degree requirements and dissertation, must lie in the period of July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2009 inclusive. Such degree award or completion is to be confirmed by the institution's graduate dean or other administrative officer responsible for doctoral degree programs.

2009 Fields of Competition:

• Biological and Life Sciences
  The following list, although not all-inclusive, illustrates the field considered as Biological and Life Sciences: biology; botany; zoology; ecology; embryology; entomology; genetics; nutrition; plant pathology; plant physiology; anatomy; biochemistry; biophysics; microbiology; pathology; pharmacology; physiology; and related fields. Also included are agriculture, forestry, and related fields.
  
  
• Humanities/Fine Arts
  The following list, although not all-inclusive, illustrates the fields considered as Humanities/Fine Arts: history; philosophy; language; linguistics; literature; archaeology; jurisprudence; the history, theory and criticism of the arts; ethics; comparative religion; and those aspects of the social sciences that employ historical or philosophical approaches.
  

Criteria:
The nominated dissertation(s) should represent original work making an unusually significant contribution to the disciplines. Both methodological and substantive quality will be judged.

Required materials:

• Each nominee must prepare an abstract (not to exceed 10 pages) of his or her dissertation, typed double-spaced on 8-1/2" x 11" white paper.
• In addition, appendices containing nontextual material, such as charts or tables, may be included.
• The pages should be numbered, and each should bear the name of the nominee.
• Letters from three referees selected by the nominee, evaluating the significance and quality of his or her dissertation work, are to be included in the nomination materials. One of these letters is to be from the nominee's dissertation supervisor, another from a member of the nominee's dissertation committee, and the third from a person of the nominee's choice.
• The institution’s graduate dean or equivalent institutional officer should send six copies each of the following to the Award Committee: abstract, the nomination form, and the letters of reference.
  

DEADLINE

All materials are to be submitted to Puriie Conley, Office of Graduate Studies, 250 Mrak Hall, no later than Friday, April 3, 2009, in order to be considered. None of these materials will be returned. A small number of finalists will be selected from among the nominees, and the Committee will review their complete dissertations.