Applications are solicited for ten Graduate Center students to participate in the twelfth annual two-week urban studies seminar at Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany. The seminar focuses on comparing persistent urban inequalities in two contexts: the developed German welfare state in Berlin and the neoliberal U.S.A. in New York City. We will explore various domains of inequality including differential access to economic resources (employment, economic sectors, the new precariousness), social capital (social networks and institutional connections or lack of them), and cultural capital (education, cultural participation and expression).

This is a remarkable opportunity to learn about one of Europe’s most interesting cities and develop your comparative urban research skills. We will ask:

• How do these forms of inequality play out in the two cities, how do such factors as race, ethnicity, gender, age, affect them, and what explains their similarities or differences?
• How do people in these two settings experience these forms of inequality in terms both of formal rights and entitlements and informal ways of making life work in the cities? To what have they generated political and civic engagement and protest?
• What are the methodological strengths and pitfalls of doing comparative research across the two cities?

Hosted by Professor Talja Blokland, Chair of Urban and Regional Sociology at Humboldt’s faculty of social sciences and in cooperation with Professor John Mollenkopf of Political Science and Sociology at the Graduate Center, the seminar features a) lectures from outstanding social scientists from Berlin universities, b) forming working groups with HU graduate students to design collaborative comparative research projects, and c) site visits to key Berlin locations where we can observe different processes of inequality. HU students, including former GC exchange students, will help orient you to Berlin and assist your research. While many activities will pivot around your comparative research group, you will also have time and support for developing your personal research interests.

Background reading for the program will include material on comparative research methods, theories of durable inequalities, patterns of social exclusion and political mobilization in Berlin and New York, the transformation of Berlin in the wake of unification, urban policy in Germany, and the situation of immigrant groups.

Information meeting: On Friday, February 13 at 2:00 PM, Prof. John Mollenkopf will lead an information meeting at the Center for Urban Research to talk about the seminar and discuss any questions or concerns.

Cost: Participants pay their own transatlantic transportation costs and local meals. The exchange program covers the costs of instruction, housing, health insurance, and local excursions. Housing will be arranged in a local hotel with shared rooms, breakfast, and internet.

TO APPLY: Send an email by Friday, February 20, 2015 to Professor John Mollenkopf at jmollenkopf@gc.cuny.edu and program coordinator Melanie Lorek, mlorek@gc.cuny.edu.
Successful applicants will be notified promptly. Your application should include:

• Your name, home address, telephone, and email address
• Your doctoral program and level
• A short statement of your research interests
• A short statement about why you would like to participate in the Berlin program.