Empowering the Next Generation
of Marketing Scholars
Built by Doctoral Students, for Doctoral Students
AMA DocSIG is the American Marketing Association’s student-led special interest group for doctoral students across all areas of marketing research and teaching, including behavioral, quantitative, and qualitative research traditions.
Founded in 1996 by marketing doctoral students, DocSIG began with a single initiative—the original Who Went Where report—and a simple belief: doctoral students deserve a community built around their unique needs.
Three decades later, DocSIG has grown into a vibrant international community that connects emerging scholars with one another while providing practical resources, meaningful professional-development opportunities, and access to experienced faculty mentors.
Whether you are beginning your PhD, developing your research identity, preparing to teach, entering the academic job market, or transitioning into a faculty career, DocSIG is here to support you at every stage of the journey.
Our programs and resources are designed around the realities of the marketing PhD journey, from the first year of doctoral study through the academic job market and the transition into a faculty career.
Our Mission
DocSIG’s mission is to make the PhD journey more connected, transparent, and empowering for marketing doctoral students worldwide. Through trusted information, practical resources, mentorship, professional development, and opportunities to contribute to the discipline, we reduce barriers and foster a welcoming academic community where doctoral students can build meaningful relationships and thrive during the PhD and beyond.
Building. Bonding. Blooming.
Our motto reflects the three ways we support marketing doctoral students:
- Building
Building the research, teaching, presenting, reviewing, leadership, and job-market skills needed for a successful academic career.
- Bonding
Creating meaningful relationships among doctoral students, faculty mentors, emerging scholars, and members of the broader AMA academic community.
- Blooming
Helping doctoral students develop their scholarly voice, share their work, gain confidence, and prepare for the next stage of their academic careers.
What DocSIG Offers Its Members
Who Went Where
Our annual Who Went Where (WWW) Report provides a data-informed snapshot of the North American marketing academic job market. It offers valuable insights into applications, interviews, placements, publications, compensation, and the experiences of recent job-market candidates. Click here to read more.
JMR Scholarly Insights
Through our monthly collaboration with the Journal of Marketing Research, doctoral students interview the authors of recently published articles and translate those conversations into accessible research insights. The initiative helps students engage with influential scholarship, connect with established researchers, and strengthen their academic voices. Click here to read more.
Webinar Series
Our monthly webinars bring doctoral students into conversation with accomplished scholars on topics related to research, methodology, publishing, teaching, the PhD experience, and the academic job market. Recordings are made available through our growing YouTube Channel. Click here to read more.
Experience DocSIG Events in Person at AMA Conferences
Twice each year, the AMA Summer and Winter Academic Conferences bring the marketing community together. At both conferences, DocSIG hosts signature in-person experiences designed specifically for doctoral students creating welcoming spaces to receive practical guidance, strengthen their research and teaching, prepare for the academic job market, and build meaningful relationships with peers and faculty.
- At the AMA Summer Academic Conference, DocSIG typically hosts a preconference program featuring a faculty mentoring breakfast and feedback sessions tailored primarily to PhD candidates who are entering or preparing to enter the academic job market.
- At the AMA Winter Academic Conference, our Doctoral Colloquium brings doctoral students and faculty together over breakfast for feedback on research ideas, faculty mentorship, and practical teaching guidance.
- At both conferences, we also host collaborative SIG receptions, including joint gatherings with the Sustainable Marketing SIG. These receptions offer doctoral students a relaxed and welcoming setting in which to expand their networks and connect with the broader marketing academic community.
Our signature conference events are exclusively available to DocSIG members and require advance registration. Event details are announced on DocSIG.org, the DocSIG LinkedIn page, and the AMA website.
You can sign up for these events when registering for the AMA Summer or Winter Academic Conference. Explore Upcoming Conference Events.
Awards and Recognition
DocSIG celebrates the faculty mentors and emerging scholars who strengthen the marketing doctoral community.
- Mathew Joseph Mentor Award
The Mathew Joseph Mentor Award honors an outstanding faculty member whose sustained commitment to mentorship has made a meaningful difference in the lives and careers of marketing doctoral students. The call for nominations is announced each fall through DocSIG’s communication channels, and the recipient is recognized in person at the AMA Winter Academic Conference.
- Mathew Joseph Emerging Scholar Award
The Mathew Joseph Emerging Scholar Award recognizes an exceptional marketing doctoral student whose scholarship demonstrates outstanding promise and the potential to make a lasting contribution to the discipline. The call for nominations is announced each spring through DocSIG’s communication channels, and the recipient is recognized in person at the AMA Summer Academic Conference.