Hi Stephan, you're absolutely right. That's why the committee this year has started penalizing repeat recipients on the points scoring - if they just got one, then they will be less likely to get one in the next year. Their reports from past years are also evaluated, and if they did not fill them in well, then that will cause a serious points deduction for them. See the guide I linked to a few emails up for specifics here.
I certainly don't mean to dismiss this entire subject. There is certainly a question of whether we should do more to prevent repeat funding. But I think that conversation needs to be had apart from specific cases, and with a clear focus on the institutions of selection and what actual effects any changes would bring.
Adrian Raddatz
On Fri, May 19, 2017 at 10:48 PM, Stephan Schulz schulz@eprover.org wrote:
On 20 May 2017, at 07:36, Adrian Raddatz ajraddatz@gmail.com wrote:
There is no manipulation. The idea that someone could have befriended
all of their reviewers every year for a decade is quite silly. I'm sorry that you didn't get a scholarship this year, but at this point there is not a useful conversation being had here.
If you think there is a problem, volunteer for the scholarship committee
next year and help fix it!
There is, of course, a legitimate question if each committee blindly choses from the current pool of applicant without looking into history, or if there is some institutional memory that will ensure a wider spread of accepted applications.
In the first case, it is not unlikely that someone who wrote a good application once and who otherwise fits the criteria will have a good chance one year later.
In the second case, one could give bonus points for first-time applicants, or forbid application immediately after one success, or have an arbitrarily complex system of awarding handicap scores based on recent successful applications.
I’m personally on the fence - a scholarship may be the only chance for some people to attend, so spreading them widely seems to be fair. On the other hand, repeat visits help to build more lasting relationships.
But I do think this is a question that should have an explicit answer either way.
Bye,
Stephan--
------------------------------ It can be done!
Please email me as schulz@eprover.org (Stephan Schulz)
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