French PhD Candidate Melanie Barbier Awarded Provost's Dissertation Year Fellowship for 2018-19

Félicitations to French PhD Candidate Melanie Barbier for being awarded a highly-competitive UC Davis Provost's Dissertation Year Fellowship for 2018-2019! Please view the article to learn more about this prestigious distinction.

The French program congratulates Melanie Barbier for being awarded a Provost's Dissertation Year Fellowship in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences for the 2018-2019 academic year. This is a highly sought-after award for doctoral students and as one of the recipients Melanie was chosen over many other talented competitors. The fellowship relieves doctoral students from having to teach or assist faculty in research and provides them a stipend to compensate for the income that they would have earned as a teaching assistant or research assistant. Free from substantial obligation, the student can focus entirely on researching and writing his or her dissertation. This award is a mark of honor bestowed on students for their scholarship and their promise of outstanding academic and professional contribution.

Barbier's dissertation focuses on the ways that people construct identities and make meaning through the production and reception of music in France - specifically French chansonchanson engagée and rap and the politics of these processes. Chanson engagée is a genre of lyric-driven French songs that take a stand on various issues, especially social issues like racism and the plight of the impoverished. As rap music emerged in France it became a popular medium for spreading social messages by song similar to chanson engagée.

We wish Melanie luck, although with such a stimulating topic it's unlikely that she will need it!