Over the summer of 2012, the Department of Political Science helped fund eight of our first year graduate students to attend the ICPSR Summer Program in Quantitative Methods of Social Research at the University of Michigan.  The ICPSR Summer Program is recognized throughout the world as the preeminent forum for basic and advanced training in the methodologies and technologies of social science research.

During their time in the program, students learned about the integration of methodological strategies with the theoretical and practical concerns that arise in research on substantive social issues. This important program encourages graduate students to become proficient in a variety of methods techniques and helps students understand how various political science scholars approach research.  The training they receive also assists in creating a baseline frame of reference for the dissertation they will be writing later in their careers.

Alexandra Castillo, a current second year student majoring in Comparative Studies, attended ICPSR and was enrolled in the Maximum Likelihood Estimation course as well as the Quantitative and Methodological Issues in Race and Ethnicity.  Here she describes her experience. "I am incredibly thankful for the methods training that I received at OSU. It was very rewarding to see all of my hard work pay off as I was able to help students from other institutions begin to understand and apply advanced MLE concepts. While I had felt overwhelmed throughout the quarter, I was suddenly transformed into a quasi-'expert' and knowledgeable peer at ICPSR."