Abbreviation IAPSS Legal status Association Headquarters Nijmegen, Netherlands | Formation 1998 Purpose Educational / Academic | |
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Type International Student's Association | ||
The International Association for Political Science Students (IAPSS) is the international association for political science students and students interested in political science issues. The association is politically independent, non-profit and student-run. It executes programs and services worldwide and aims to have global impact in the international political science sphere.
Contents
- History
- Structure
- Annual Conference General Assembly
- World Congress for Political Science Students
- Academic Conferences
- POLITIKON
- A Different View
- Journals in Planning
- Executive Committee
- References
IAPSS sees itself as an umbrella organization for local, regional and national political science student associations and offers a wide range of political science programs and services for both association and individual members. It hosts a number of international political science conferences, study trips and a summer school each year - exclusively dedicated to the promotion of political science students knowledge development, their scientific research and publications. The IAPSS own journal POLITIKON and the online-blog A Different View publish student works on a regular base. Half-a-dozen official IAPSS delegations are sent to major political science conventions and congresses annually. Academic panels at IAPSS' conferences are exclusively designed for the presentation of research projects from political science undergraduates, graduates and post-graduates. Members receive a comprehensive online collection of relevant opportunities from the political science sphere twice a month. An online career center provides one of the largest collection of political science related data, information and websites as well as an introduction to the discipline itself.
History
The idea of a permanent international political science students' network was first discussed in 1996, when students from Leiden University visited colleagues in Rome. The first IAPSS General Assembly was held in Leiden, the Netherlands, in 1998, where the Association was founded and legally registered.
During the following years, IAPSS evolved from a network to an institutionalized governing body. In 2003 a permanent seat was established as the association's headquarters in Ljubljana, Slovenia. In 2004, the first annual "Executive Committee" (ExCom) was elected, coordinating programs and services on various levels directly from the Slovenian capital. By 2005, the incorporation of a new association in Slovenia was finalized and succeeded the previous Dutch based body. Due to internal measures of centralization and its proximity to the EU's capital Brussels, IAPSS is reloacting its headquarters to Nijmegen, the Netherlands, by May 1, 2013. Based on a resolution taken by the 16th General Assembly 2013 in Rome, Italy, the realization of all portfolio programs will be coordinated from IAPSS' new permanent seat, located at Radboud University Nijmegen. The headquarters' relocation was accompanied with a full revision of the statues and internal regulations of the association.
As by 2013, IAPSS has embraced more than 80 political science student associations and more than 15,000 students from over 60 different countries from Europe, Asia and Latin America, North America and Africa. It holds active relationships with other major political science associations including the International Political Science Association (IPSA), the International Studies Association (ISA), the American Political Science Association (APSA) and the European Consortium for Political Research (ECPR) as well as a range of student-run associations from around the globe such as the Association des États Généraux des Étudiants de l'Europe (AEGEE) and the Young Transatlantic Initiative (YTI).
Structure
IAPSS maintains a system of multi-level membership, including associations and ordinary individual members (both with voting rights) and selected honorary and alumni members. Annual elections select the different governing bodies:
Annual Conference & General Assembly
The Annual Conference and General Assembly (AC/GA) is the principal event of the association and is held yearly. It is organized by one of the association members, elected by the GA itself.
The AC/GA is divided in two parts: the annual conference, made up of panels, seminars, lectures and debates, on a specific theme regarding political science, chosen by the association member which organizes the AC/GA; and the General Assembly which discusses and approves guidelines and elects the IAPSS bodies for the next legislative term. The event usually takes place in a country's capital or major town and lasts 5–6 days. From 2013 onwards, two IAPSS General Assemblies are held annually, with a spring and an autumn edition.
World Congress for Political Science Students
Large demand and the internationalization of the association led towards the installation of an annual World Congress for Political Science Students, as IAPSS' largest event to take place in spring on an annual base. The 1st World Congress was held in 2014 and incorporated a large-scale international political science conference and an IAPSS General Assembly.
Academic Conferences
Aside from the AC/GA, IAPSS organizes several international conferences throughout the year on political science issues. It is organized by one of the association members, elected by the GA, and focusses exclusively on the examination of a selected political science topic, the promotion of student research projects and inputs of academic, civil and political actors from the political science arena.
POLITIKON
"Politikon: The IAPSS Journal of Political Science" (also Politikon) is the principal academic review of the Association. Founded in 2001, it is published quarterly, with a short two-year hiatus from 2009 to 2011, due to a comprehensive redefinition process.
Politikon publishes undergraduate and graduate student articles from around the world. The peer-review and supervision process involves academic experts from across the world and abstracts from Politikon are included in the International Political Science Association's (IPSA) Annual International Political Science Abstracts.
A Different View
A Different View (also ADV) is the Association's online blog with a critical touch. Founded in 2005 as a monthly online magazine, ADV deals with a wide range of topics including political, social, cultural, economic affairs. It gives undergraduate and graduate students from around the world the opportunity to shed light on the issues that their countries face through the publication of blogposts.
Journals in Planning
By summer 2014, IAPSS will release two new journals. On the one hand, Encuentro Latino Americano (ELA), will focus on politics of, in and about Latin America, with articles published in Spanish, English and Portuguese. Secondly, the Journal for Political Theory and Analysis (JPTA) will seek to foster the scientific work of PhD and post-graduate students in the field of political theory, published in English.
Executive Committee
The Association is run by an eight-member Executive Committee (ExCom). Executive Committee members coordinate respective departments and are responsible for the execution of the Association's portfolio. From 1999 to 2004, the Chairperson of the Member Association responsible to organize the annual Academic Conference & General Assembly (ACGA) served also as President of the association. From October 1, 2004 these positions were detached, and the IAPSS Executive Committee (ExCom), was established as a permanent board and led by an annually elected president.
The Executive Committee is furthermore assisted by a large number of departmental coordinators who support the board in the execution of its operations.