IIS Announces PhD Scholarship Awards for 2010

Since 1997, The Institute of Ismaili Studies has been awarding doctoral scholarships to suitable candidates whose work contributes to the academic mandate of the IIS. The two recipients of the 2010 cycle of the scholarship are Laila Kadiwal and Sorbon Mavlonazarov.

Laila Kadiwal (GPISH Class of 2009) will study towards a PhD in Sociology in the Department of Sociology, University of Sussex. She will work on her thesis entitled International Teacher Education: An exploration of students’ learning experiences in light of their diversity (Case study: Secondary Teacher Education Programme of The Institute of Ismaili Studies) under the supervision of Professor Gerard Delanty. Laila holds a Masters in Educational Studies with a specific focus on higher education from the University of Oxford. She is interested in investigating the issues of identity, pedagogies and globalisation in international educational settings. She has previously taught primary and secondary classes and led educational projects, such as evaluation and curriculum design, and conducted workshops for teachers, parents and youth in India.

Sorbon Mavlonazarov (GPISH class of 2008) will study towards a PhD in Social Anthropology in the Department of Anthropology, Durham University. He will work on his thesis entitled, Changes and Continuity in Shrines Visitation in Badakhshan: A Case Study of Wakhan Valley, under the supervision of Dr. S. Lyon and Dr. C. Merli. Sorbon graduated from the Department of Linguistics at Tajik State Pedagogical University in 1998. He joined the Institute’s Graduate Programme in Islamic Studies and Humanities in 2005. As part of the GPISH course, he conducted field research on ‘The Process of Assimilation and its Impact on Social Values of Badakhshan Ismailis in Tajikistan’. After completing his MSc in Social Anthropology at the University College London, Sorbon joined the Central Asian Studies Unit of the Institute as an intern.

For more information on the Doctoral Scholarships offered by the IIS, previous recipients, and the application process for next year, please visit the Doctoral Scholarship Programme page of the website where the application for the 2011 Doctoral Scholarship Cycle will be available in January 2011.