ISA eSymposium for Sociology

The present Editor of eSymposium, Kelvin Low, will soon complete his term of service. The ISA is nowseeking expressions of interest for this position. The new editor will take on responsibilities in the secondhalf of 2020.

Deadline extended: September 18, 2020 Call for new editor

The ISA is now seeking expressions of interest for the position of editor for eSymposium. The editorship is a position which not onlyconfers prestige on the editor and their department and university, but also provides special opportunities for the professional development of staff and students working on the journal. The editor will be in a position to establish international contacts and learn about the wide range of interesting work being published outside of what may be commonly accessible in any single country, while developing their creative ideas to engage a diverse audience of sociologistsworldwide.

 The new editor will take on full responsibilities in the second half of 2020 (though liaising with former editor about the handover will be required before then), for an initial term of 3 years; there will be the possibility of renewals for a total of 4 years in two 2 year-installments. Below is further information on the publication, the tasks associated with the editorship, and how to express your interest in the position.

 The journal’s remit

eSymposium is an official journal of the International Sociological Association, published three times a year in March, July and December. It integrates different formats that have sociological value for and interest to an international community of social scientists, from the point of view of both pure, scholarly research and of applied dimensions. eSymposium welcomes essays, interviews, videos, photoessays, and discussions from authors from all over the world, in all stages of their career. The new editor will of course have scope for developing new ideas within this general framework.

The editor’s role

The editor will need to set up office arrangements and assistance in accordance with needs and local practice, and manage the budget provided from local and/or ISA sources. It is expected that the editor’s department provide adequate support, to include at least free office space and IT facilities. Costs which can be supported by the ISA include editorial assistance, office expenses and some translations.The editor should have access to e-mail, and preferably also occasional electronic/video-conferencing.

Editing eSymposium is somewhat different from editing an ordinary journal, and its routine tasks would entail:

-To solicit or commission different genres of writing for its 3 issues per year

• Photo-essays
• Audiovisual clips
• Reflections on administrative, teaching, or research experience
• Research work-in-progress/concept notes
• ‘In conversation with’ interview pieces with senior scholars or administrators
• Any other potential genres that can be displayed on ISA Online portal

-To publish in balance essays that are contributed by

• Senior and early-career scholars and postgraduates
• Scholars from the Global North and Global South
• Scholars from a wide-ranging scope of universities, institutions, think tanks, and research agencies
• Scholars working on different domains of sociological and anthropological inquiry
• Scholars working on qualitative and quantitative approaches
• ISA members from the Association’s Research Committees, Working Groups and Thematic Groups

 -To see to social Media presence and online traffic/readership

• Enhancing the social media presence of eSymposium on Twitter, Facebook and other online platforms
• Generating and ramping up online readership for this e-publication The editor is also responsible for
• Attending the annual meetings of the Publications Committee,
• Preparing for them a report on eSymposium’s activities, and
• Presenting an annual budget based on financial records of income from the ISA and expenditures on secretarial assistance, office expenses,

The editor does not have to be a native English speaker but does need to have a good command of academic English. Reading knowledge of other languages obviously also helps.

Expression of interest

In preparing your expression of interest, please include

• an up-to-date CV;
• a summary of your experience and contacts relevant to the editorship;
• your ideas for further developing eSymposium;
• information on the kind and level of support, whether financial or in terms of resources provided, that your institution would give you in undertaking the role of editor, with a letter ofconfirmation from your Dean, Department Chair, or any otherappropriate university authority. Please indicate also whether ornot there are any local taxes or charges (e.g. for overheads), and if so, whether the ISA can claim exemption from them as anon-profit charitable

Expressions of interest should be submitted by e-mail to Eloísa Martín,ISA

Vice-President for Publications <isa.vp.publications@gmail.com>, and copied to the ISA Secretariat <isa@isa-sociology.org> by September 18, 2020.

Download