Leisure Studies Graduate Paper Award

The Leisure Studies Graduate Paper Award is sponsored by Taylor and Francis and is intended to support the development of outstanding scholarship by graduate students working in leisure studies across the world. The award will be made to a graduate student who submits a lead authored paper for consideration by a panel of judges, including representatives from the journal’s Managing Editors and Editorial Board. The paper should be prepared according to the submission guidelines of the journal and will be assessed according to its originality, significance and contribution to scholarly debate in leisure studies.

The winner will be invited to receive the award and present the paper at the annual Leisure Studies Association conference after which further feedback will be provided to support the winner to submit their paper to Leisure Studies.

The panel of judges reserves the right not to make the award in the event none of the submitted papers meet the award criteria. There can be no guarantees that the paper will be eventually published in the journal and any submission will be processed in the usual way.

Eligibility

• The student must be registered for masters or doctoral level graduate work at the time of submission.
• The student must be the lead author on the paper and only one submission per author will be accepted.
• The paper cannot be considered if it has been submitted previously, or simultaneously, for another award, or is being considered by another journal.
• The student must be a member of the Leisure Studies Association at the time of submission.
• Previous winners are not eligible.

Award

• The award winner will be invited to present their paper at the annual Leisure Studies Association Conference.
• Registration, accommodation and travel fees are included in the prize and shall be paid upon the production of appropriate receipts.
• The award winner will receive a Taylor and Francis sponsored prize of £150 worth of books.
• The award winner will be announced on the websites and social media accounts of Leisure Studies and Leisure Studies Association.

Submission guidelines

• Candidates should submit a paper of 5,000 words (excluding references) on a topic relevant to leisure studies. Papers over 5,000 words will not be considered.
• Papers should be prepared according to the submission guidelines of Leisure Studies and the identity of the author/s should not be recognisable in the text.
• All papers should be submitted as a Word file.
• Authors are to submit a letter, signed by their academic supervisor/advisor, verifying their graduate student status at the time of submission. This letter should also include a clear statement of the substantial contribution made by the student (as lead author) to the paper.

Submissions should be sent to Professor Thomas Fletcher, t.e.fletcher@leedsbeckett.ac.uk

Deadline for receipt of submissions: Thursday May 1^st 2025

The winner will be announced by: Friday May 30^th 2025