Pandemic Research Trajectories of Social Science Students, UNSJ (2019-2021)

Abstract

This study analyzes the research trajectories of scholarship students from the School of Social Sciences (FaCSo) at the Universidad Nacional de San Juan (UNSJ), corresponding to the 2019, 2020, and 2021 cohorts, who are considered “newcomers” to the scientific-academic field.

The research focuses on students who obtained scholarships through the calls of the Consejo Interuniversitario Nacional (EVC-CIN Scientific Vocations Stimulation Program) and the Consejo de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas y de Creación Artística (CICITCA). The time frame covers the pre-pandemic, pandemic, and post-pandemic periods, a context that generated significant transformations in the scholarship system, particularly as a result of modifications to its regulations.

The theoretical framework is grounded in Reflexive Sociology as developed by Pierre Bourdieu, drawing on key categories conceived as a “toolbox,” in articulation with Methodological Relationalism. Among the main findings, differences in research trajectories are identified, associated with the varying levels of economic capital among scholarship holders. However, the pandemic introduced processes of flexibilization both in access requirements and in the evaluation and completion stages of the scholarships, particularly through the implementation of partial reports.