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Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali Fellowship for Excellence in Persian Studies

The Division of Humanities invites nominations for the Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali Fellowship for Excellence in Persian Studies. This fellowship is intended to support one graduate student each year from across the humanities or social sciences who has an approved dissertation topic focusing on Persian/Iranian studies.  The fellowship provides $25,000 in direct support and may not be used to cover fees or tuition. The fellowship recipient will be permitted to apply for a second year of support, but the second year is not guaranteed. The recipient will be required to provide a letter outlining progress during the fellowship year and  any notable accomplishments produced as a result of the fellowship. The eligibility criteria are as follows: enrolled  at UCLA full-time and having completed the course work for the Ph.D. program within the Humanities or Social Sciences, have an approved dissertation topic focusing on Persian/Iranian studies,  have maintained a minimum GPA of 3.0 throughout Ph.D. studies, and have demonstrated a strong interest and excellence in Persian/Iranian studies

Application Materials

  1. A Curriculum Vitae
  2. A two-page (maximum) description of the student’s dissertation work that also outlines how the fellowship year will support progress toward the Ph.D.
  3. A letter of recommendation from the student’s dissertation director or other suitable faculty member.
  4. A letter or email from your department student affairs officer/ admin confirming support of fees for the AY 24-25.

The call for nomination each academic year is sent through the department Student Affairs Officers. A committee comprised of faculty representatives from humanities and social sciences will review and rank applicants and award notifications will be sent to departments.

The deadline to submit nominations is March 1st, 2024. Please submit your self nomination to Barbara Van Nostrand at bvannost@humnet.ucla.edu. A committee comprised of faculty representatives from humanities and social sciences will review and rank applicants and award notifications will be sent to departments and candidates by no later then May 2024.