WORKSHOP ANNOUNCEMENT

This is a 7-day intensive seminar to be held at the Bilkent University, Ankara, Turkey. The intended audience includes doctoral students and faculty members, especially junior faculty members; however, anyone interested is welcome.

Objective of the Seminar

1. The goal of the seminar is to familiarize scholars with the socio-culturally inspired studies of consumption or Consumer Culture Theoretics (CCT). The readings and the speakers highlight an interdisciplinary perspective and seek to expose the participants to discussions of consumption in marketing, anthropology, sociology, communication, and cultural and gender studies. The historical, socio-cultural, economic and ethical dimensions and challenges of consumption in developed and developing nations in the contemporary global world are emphasized.
2. We will discuss what constitutes a theoretical contribution and how to theorize. Thus, the seminar also aims to enable the participants to conceptualize their work in relationship to the literature.

Seminar Coordinators

Faculty

SEMINAR READINGS AND FACULTY PRESENTATIONS

Location and Dates

The seminar will take place at Bilkent University, Faculty of Business Administration premises, located 13 kilometers away from downtown Ankara, the capital city of Turkey. The seminar will begin at 09:00 am Monday, June 11 and end the night of Sunday, June 17.

Other Course Information

The seminar will be held in English and is 6 ECTS credits. Participants are free to choose to make a presentation and get course credit or not. Those participants willing to present their research projects will receive feedback, will be evaluated, and receive course credit. The number of participants is limited to 25. The tuition and fees for the seminar is 625 Euros in total. This amount includes participation in the seminar, accommodation, and meals as well.

Seminar Prerequisites

There are no particular prerequisites for the participants. Selection will be based on the letter of interest, which is expected to address the student’s dissertation research interests and the fit of this seminar with their doctoral studies. For those participants who do not want to receive course credit, the letter of interest is expected to indicate their research interests and the reason why they want to participate in the seminar. The letter of interest should be between 1000 and 1500 words. Letters of interest should be sent to Berna Tarı as an attachment to an e-mail message. The deadline for applications is April 6, 2007.

Program Summary

The program consists of lectures, panels, and meetings. A reading list will be sent to the participants after they register. The participants will come to the seminar ready to make a brief presentation of their research project. At the end of the seminar, they will make another presentation that will indicate how their research project will be modified based on the inspirations from the seminar. Students will be evaluated based on their presentations, participation, and the capacity shown in enriching their perspective. The program is below.