Alwaleed Bin Talal Undergraduate and Doctoral Thesis Prizes

Thesis Prize poster 2024

Thesis Prizes 2024

We are pleased to announce that we are accepting submissions for the Alwaleed Bin Talal Undergraduate Thesis Prize and Alwaleed Bin Talal Doctoral Dissertation Prize in Islamic Studies. The prizes recognize students who make original contributions to current scholarly discourse on Islam and Muslim societies, past and present. Theses will be evaluated based on the quality of the research, originality of topic, clarity of expression, and strength of argument.

Undergraduate
This prize is open to Harvard College students in all academic disciplines in the class of 2024. Students may self-nominate. However, nominations from faculty advisors are encouraged. Letters of nomination can be sent by the advisor to islamicstudies@harvard.edu. This prize carries a $2,000 cash award.

Undergraduate submissions are due by Friday, April 12, 2024 at 5pm through CARAT. The award will be announced by May 17, 2024.

Doctoral
This prize is open to Harvard doctoral students in all disciplines who complete their Ph.D. between June 2023 and May 2024. A nomination from a faculty advisor is required. This prize carries a $3,000 cash award.

Doctoral submissions are due by Friday, May 17, 2024 at 5pm through CARAT. The award will be announced in Fall 2024.

All applications should be submitted through CARAT. Please visit islamicstudies.harvard.edu/thesis-prize for more information and contact islamicstudies@harvard.edu with any questions.

2023

Undergraduate

Waseem NabulsiWaseem Sari Nabulsi (Anthropology and History) won the 2023 Alwaleed Bin Talal Undergraduate Thesis Prize in Islamic Studies for his thesis entitled, "Magic Mountain: Samaritan Astrological Intervention in Palestinian Misfortune."

Doctoral 

Nariman AavaniDr. Nariman Aavani (Study of Religion) won the 2023 Alwaleed Bin Talal Dissertation Prize in Islamic Studies for his dissertation entitled, “Knowledge, Action, and the Ultimate Goal of Human Life: A Hindu-Muslim Cross-Cultural Philosophy of Religion in the Early Modern Era: Gadādhara (d. 1660) and Mullā Ṣadrā (d. 1635).” 

Honorable Mention

Dr. Marijana Mišević (History and Middle Eastern Studies) was named honorable mention for her dissertation, “Writing Slavic in the Arabic Script: Literacy and Multilingualism in the Early Modern Ottoman Empire.” 

2022

Undergraduate

Farah AfifyFarah Afify (Social Studies) won the 2022 Alwaleed Bin Talal Undergraduate Thesis Prize for her thesis, “Radical and Muslim: Islamic Liberationist Thought in the Black Panther Party.”

Doctoral

Janan DelgadoDr. Janan Delgado (Study of Religion) won the 2022 Alwaleed Bin Talal Doctoral Dissertation Prize for her dissertation, “The Ties That Bind: Child Custody in Andalusian Malikism, 3rd/9th - 6th/12th c.”

2021

Undergraduate

Isabel KendallIsabel Kendall won the 2021 Alwaleed Bin Talal Undergraduate Thesis Prize in Islamic Studies for her dissertation entitled, “I Know How the Caged Bird Tweets: Online Dissent and Physical Repression in Saudi Arabia, 2015-2020.”

Doctoral

Rushain AbbasiDr. Rushain Abbasi won the 2021 Alwaleed Bin Talal Dissertation Prize in Islamic Studies for his dissertation, “Beyond the Realm of Religion: The Idea of the Secular in Premodern Islam.”

Honrable Mention

Caitlyn OlsonDr. Caitlyn Olson was named honorable mention for her dissertation, “Creed, Belief, and the Common Folk: Disputes in the Early Modern Maghrib (9th/15th - 11th/17th c.).”

2020

Undergraduate

MuratMurat Eczacıbaşı won the 2020 Alwaleed Bin Talal Undergraduate Thesis Prize in Islamic Studies for his thesis, “Reflections on the Imperial Past: The Evolution of Early High School History Textbooks in the Republic of Turkey.”

Doctoral

Mary ElstonDr. Mary Elston won the 2020 Alwaleed Bin Talal Prize Dissertation Prize in Islamic Studies for her dissertation, “Reviving Turāth: Islamic Education in Modern Egypt.”

Honorable Mention

Mira Xenia SchwerdaDr. Mira Xenia Schwerda was named honorable mention for her dissertation, “How Photography Changed Politics: The Case of the Iranian Constitutional Revolution (1905-1911).” 

2019

Undergraduate

Anwar OmeishAnwar Omeish won the 2019 Alwaleed Bin Talal Undergraduate Thesis Prize in Islamic Studies for her thesis entitled, “Toward the Modern Revolution: Frantz Fanon, Secularity, and the Horizons of Political Possibility in Revolutionary Algeria.” 

Honorable Mention

Hannah HessHannah Hess was named honorable mention for her thesis entitled, “Debating Misyār: Temporary Marriage in Contemporary Saudi Arabia.”