Dr. Smoki Musaraj, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, is seeking an undergraduate research apprentice for a project on “Tales from Albarado: Pyramid Firms and Ponzi Logics of Accumulation in Postsocialist Albania.”
Currently enrolled Ohio University undergraduates from all colleges are invited to apply for the Research Apprenticeship Program. Administered by the Honors Tutorial College and sponsored by several other units across campus, the program enables students to build skills in research and creative activity by supporting faculty projects. Selected students are paid $10 an hour and agree to work during the time period specified in the description.
This apprenticeship is for 28 hours a week for the the last five weeks of Summer 2016 and for 10 hours a week for the 2016-17 academic year.
How to Apply
Applications are due by March 18, 2016. To apply for apprenticeship(s), a student must e-mail Dr. Smoki Musaraj. Contact information is listed in the apprenticeship description. The email should explain the student’s qualifications and interest in the project (no more than three paragraphs) and have an attached resume. It is strongly recommended that students meet with an adviser in the Career and Leadership Development Center in Baker Center 533 to help them compose their letter and resume before applying. Late applications will not be accepted. Notification will occur by April 15, 2016. For more information about the application process, contact Laura Schaeffer, Director of Honors Enrichment Programs at schaeffe@ohio.edu or 593-2725. Students may apply for as many apprenticeships as they wish.
Project Description
My general project entails completing a book manuscript and developing an online archive around the pyramid schemes that emerged and collapsed in Albania in the mid-’90s. Over the summer, I plan to complete revisions and edits to the manuscript, including developing an index, a list of references, and formatting the text per publisher guidelines. I am also planning to develop an online archive of documents and images that relate to the infamous boom and bust of these schemes. While this second aspect of my project will begin in summer 2016, I hope to continue developing the site through 2016-17 to include other visual or narrative records of other instances of speculative bubbles around the world and archive would be of use to the general public. The archive would be a repository of documents and images collected during my fieldwork in Albania. Among others, the materials include contracts issued by the firms, interest rates published in local media, books of accounts by brokers, newspaper accounts of the firms before and after their collapse, assets of the firms’ 0thers. In addition, in the long term I hope to use this space to host a larger archive on speculative bubbles in different parts of the worlds.
Desired Qualifications for Apprentice
Some knowledge of and interest in economic anthropology/sociology/geography/development and excellent writing skills are required. Attention to detail and experience researching academic sources through various research venues highly preferred. Knowledge of and/or interest in the Balkans/Mediterranean cultures preferred. Web development skills preferred. Experience with blogging/social media and web design preferred.
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