The Institute for the Study of Business Markets
Doctoral Awards Competition
2017 Competition Information

Penn State’s Institute for the Study of Business Markets announces its twenty-seventh annual Business Marketing Doctoral Support Award Competition.

Up to three candidates in accredited doctoral programs will receive dissertation support awards. Dissertations in any area of business-to-business (industrial) marketing or in any of the methodological areas that support advances in business marketing will be considered. See our "Research Priorities" link for more information. Particular consideration will be given to proposals that address the areas of (1) Marketing’s Role in B2B Innovation (2) B2B Buying Behavior and (3) B2B Customer Analytics.

In addition to applications from PhD students in marketing, we encourage applications from students in economics, management science, organizational psychology, statistics, anthropology and other disciplines whose developments help advance our understanding of the operation of the business marketplace.

The award consists of:

• Up to $7,500 in financial assistance to be used for travel, conference attendance, data collection, and other expenses of conducting and presenting the results of the research.
• Assistance, as needed, in gaining the cooperation of both Institute member firms and non-member firms for data, interviews, etc. 

The outstanding submission, if awarded, will receive The Institute Dissertation Proposal Prize, an additional award of $2,500.

Submission Information

PhD candidates interested in the competition should submit an abstract of their research not to exceed five double-spaced pages, along with a current vita and a vita of their dissertation advisor. The abstract should address the potential importance of their work to business marketing practice, its theoretical contributions, the research methodology, and the amount and kind of support requested. The abstract must be submitted no later than September 15, 2017. See special note on instructions for Electronic Submissions.

Proposals will be judged by an academic panel, consisting of representatives of The Institute and qualified faculty members from other universities. The panel will not provide feedback to the entrants at this stage. Finalists will be notified by October 10, 2017.

Final proposals not to exceed 15 double-spaced pages are due on November 15, 2017. Winners will be announced by February 15, 2018. All finalists will receive feedback from the academic review panel.

Any pages of the abstract and/or proposal (not including reference pages) exceeding the page limits listed above will not be considered in the review process. Request samples of abstracts or proposals by sending an email to LNicolini@psu.edu.

Academics interested in requesting research funding other than the competition should see research proposal funding for information. Request further information about the The Institute and the competition from:

Dr. Gary L. Lilien, Research Director
Institute for the Study of Business Markets
Smeal College of Business
The Pennsylvania State University
484 Business Building
University Park, PA 16802-3603
Telephone: 814-863-2782
Fax: 814-863-0413

Submissions should be sent as email attachments. Acceptable formats for submissions are Word, PDF, and RTF. Electronic submissions should be sent to LNicolini@psu.edu.

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