Second-year GPISH Students Present Research Project Proposals

Second-year students on the Graduate Programme in Islamic Studies and Humanities (GPISH) presented their MA dissertation research proposals on March 2nd.

In an online session watched by fellow students, teaching faculty, scholars and staff, the 11 students outlined their studies’ topics, research questions, methodologies and limitations. The proposals touched on a broad and diverse range of subjects—women’s rights, refugee studies, religion and development, education, identity, online activism and the Covid-19 pandemic, to name a few—but all reflected the GPISH course’s engagement with some of the most pressing issues in contemporary Muslim societies and cultures.

The proposals prompted discussion and debate among students, teachers and scholars, whose questions and suggestions will now help students to hone the focus of their projects and whose source and reading recommendations will enrich their research.

Students will undertake the data-collection phase of their dissertation projects over the summer and will present their findings later in the year. The Covid-19 pandemic continues to pose a challenge to GPISH students conducting fieldwork but, as with last year’s cohort, students demonstrated their ability to harness skills in research and technology to develop comprehensive, thought-provoking projects despite the current limitations.

In their first two years, GPISH students are enrolled on a Master’s in Islamic Studies and Humanities at the Institute of Ismaili Studies. The course encourages an inter-disciplinary approach to Islamic civilization, and particular attention is given to issues of modernity that arise as Muslims seek to relate their heritage to contemporary circumstances. The programme aims to prepare students for a second Master’s degree at a UK university in their third year, and the research component is a core part of this preparation.

The preliminary titles of the students’ research projects can be found below.