Student Research Award

Pitts Theology Library Student Research Award

This award, established in 2021, is given annually at the Candler Honors Day Ceremony to a Candler student who demonstrates creativity in research, maturity in theological thought, and excellence in using library resources to mount an argument, demonstrated through a submitted research project. Applicants will submit a single research paper or project completed as part of Candler coursework during the current academic year. All documents should be emailed to pittsresearchaward@emory.edu in advance of the deadline.

Submission Deadline

March 31, 2024; All documents should emailed to pittsresearchaward@emory.edu.

Student Eligibility

To be eligible to win this award, all applicants must meet the following criteria:

  • Be a current Candler masters-level or DMin student in good academic standing;
  • Have completed the submitted research as a project related to a course completed at Candler School of Theology (edits for submission are permitted);
  • Be willing for the library to share the submitted project through a link on the library’s website.

Eligible Types of and Formats of Submissions

All submissions must be significant research projects, though there is no single format dictated. Written papers should be at least 2,500 words, submitted as a single PDF, formatted using the Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition) Notes and Bibliography system. Digital projects should be submitted as a link to a hosted project. All resources used in a digital project should be cited following the Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition). Each submission should be accompanied by a cover letter of no more than 300 words that provides the background or context for the project and briefly addresses the criteria for selection. All submissions should be stripped of any personal-identifying information, as the submission will be judged blindly.

Criteria for Selection

Award submissions will be assessed on the following criteria:

  • Originality of the argument and engagement with scholarly conversations;
  • Clarity of thought, argumentation, and the use of evidence;
  • Effective application of information literacy principles, including determining information needs, evaluating and analyzing information, and making responsible use of information by providing appropriate and accurate citations;
  • Sophistication and originality in the use of library or archival collections, not limited to those owned by Emory University. Particular attention will be given to those projects that make use of primary sources.
  • Creativity in the argument, use of evidence, and mode of presentation.

Selection Committee

All submissions will be blindly reviewed by a committee that consists of the following members:

  • Director of Pitts Theology Library
  • A reference librarian from Pitts Theology Library
  • The Head of Digital Initiatives and Technologies from Pitts Theology Library

Submissions will be received via a third party (pittsresearchaward@emory.edu), stripped of identifying information, and transmitted to the committee.

Award Prize

The winner will receive a $500 cash prize, funded by the Friends of Pitts Theology Library. In addition, a Pitts special collections item acquired in the current academic year will be named in honor of the winner.

Past Recipients

Pitts Theology Library Student Research Award Winner: Emily-Elizabeth Castelloe

Pitts Theology Library Student Research Award Winner: Emily-Elizabeth Castelloe

Elizabeth MillerMay 16, 20233 min read

Emily-Elizabeth Castelloe, MDiv 2023 Pitts is excited to announce that this year’s recipient of the Pitts Theology Library Student Research Award is graduating MDiv student Emily-Elizabeth Castelloe. This award was based on Castelloe’s MDiv thesis, “Christians in the Making: Childhood Education for Conversion, Profession, and Membership in the Early American Methodist Movement (1738-1864).” The work explores written expressions of early American Methodist theology and the resulting…

Chris RayAlexander in suit coat and newsboy cap standing in a library

Pitts Theology Library Student Research Award Winner: Chris RayAlexander

Anne Marie McLeanApr 25, 20222 min read

Pitts Theology Library congratulates Candler MDiv student Chris RayAlexander as the recipient of the annual Pitts Theology Library Student Research Award! Chris was selected for his submitted essay, “Power up for Grabs: The Rod of Iron, Muscular Christianity, and Formal Whiteness.” The Pitts award committee judged this essay to be the best demonstration of creativity in research, maturity in theological thought, and excellence in using library…