PLEASE NOTE: The nomination deadline has been extended to 15 February 2016.
The Gravitational Wave International Committee is pleased to announce that nominations for the 2015 GWIC Thesis Prize and for the 2015 Stefano Braccini Thesis Prize are now open. Both prizes recognize outstanding PhD theses in the general area of gravitational waves. To better serve the community, GWIC and the Friends of Stefano Braccini have moved to coordinate the two Prizes. There is a common call for nominations, and all theses submitted will be considered for both awards by a joint selection committee. Two winners will be selected, with the GWIC Thesis Prize emphasizing the impact of the research on the field of gravitational wave science, while the Braccini Thesis Prize will be awarded with an emphasis on innovation.
Members of the gravitational wave community are invited to nominate students who have performed notable research on any aspect of gravitational wave science. Theses will be judged on 1) originality and creativity of the research, 2) importance to the field of gravitational waves and gravitational wave detection, broadly interpreted, and 3) clarity of presentation. Each winner will receive a certificate of recognition and a prize of US$ 1,000.
GWIC is privileged to nominate both thesis prize winners for publication in the book series Springer Theses. Subject to certain qualifications, Springer Theses publishes exceptional Ph.D. theses in the physical sciences in their entirety. If accepted, each winner will receive an additional 500 Euros from Springer upon publication.
Eligibility: Both prizes are awarded on a calendar year basis. Theses should have been accepted by their institutions between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2015. It is expected that many of the nominations will come from the member projects of GWIC, but this is not a requirement. Nominated theses may be in any language. A committee selected from the gravitational wave community will evaluate the nominations and select the winner. The selection committee will make all determinations about eligibility.
Nominations: Nominations should be submitted to the selection committee chair (Maura Mclaughlin) by 15 February 2016. The nomination package consists of (i) the thesis, (ii) a letter of nomination, preferably from the thesis advisor, and (iii) a supporting letter from another scientist familiar with the work. The nomination and supporting letters should describe the importance and novelty of the research and the student’s particular contribution.
Electronic submission of the thesis and letters is strongly preferred, with the thesis and the letters in separate pdf files. Electronic copies of the nomination materials may be sent to Selection Committee Chair (gwic-braccini-prize AT mail.wvu.edu, with a copy to the GWIC Secretary (at stan AT ligo.caltech.edu). All submissions will be acknowledged; if an acknowledgement is not received shortly after the deadline, please contact the GWIC Secretary (gwic-exsec AT gravity.psu.edu).
If electronic submission is impossible, please contact the GWIC Secretary (at gwic-exsec AT gravity.psu.edu) for instructions concerning paper submission.