Society for Social Studies of Science (4S) Graduate Student Travel Grant

The NSF travel grant will allow the Society for Social Studies of Science (4S) to support graduate students by way of travel awards to attend its annual professional conference. These meetings are the primary scholarly event in the interdisciplinary academic field of science and technology studies (STS) and serve as a locus of professionalization and network-building beyond the student’s local departmental. The 4S annual meeting brings together a range of international and interdisciplinary scholars who share the common goal of understanding the development of science, technology, and medicine and the way they interact within varying social contexts. Participation in these meetings expose graduate students to professional networks, allowing them to receive feedback and mentoring from senior scholars in their field; keep abreast of developments in their area; and disseminate the results of their own research, ultimately supporting the next generation of scholars in STS. Travel grants ensure that access to the conference is equitable and produces a diverse cohort of graduate student attendees. The impact of graduate student participation in the annual meeting also extends beyond the field. Past NSF travel grants have funded students in a wide range of disciplines, including religious studies, history, medical and cultural anthropology, sociology, innovation and technology management, veterinary science, psychology, geography, communication and media studies, and gender studies. In this way, the benefits of NSF funding are wide–ranging-encompassing not just those working directly within science and technology studies. Facilitating student attendance at the annual meeting is critical for creating engaged and informed teachers, researchers, and policy makers, potentially impacting countless undergraduate students and the direction of social policy. STS graduates go on to work in a variety of settings–from universities to start-ups to the Office of Science and Technology Policy–bringing knowledge of the social factors necessary to bring about sustained and equitable science and technology innovation in our society. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.