On Monday 17 July, we were delighted to celebrate the graduation of 50 students who had completed either their Master’s or their PhD.
Among the class of 2023 were Dilmurad Yusupov, whose thesis ‘Disability and Citizenship in Post-Soviet Uzbekistan’ explored the role of disabled people’s organisations, mahalla and Islam in his home country of Uzbekistan.
“It has been a challenging journey” said Dilmurad. “I had to extend my deadline by a year, due to the challenges of the pandemic, and also my daughter was born. I would like to thank IDS: it was such an amazing place to do a PhD. Mainly because of the people: I have made friends from all over the world – including Paraguay, Mexico and India – and we’ve been able to share experiences of development issues from the perspectives of these countries. This is a community which I hope I will be a part of for life. It’s not just been an academic experience; it’s been a life journey.”
Dilmurad was not the only person whose family grew while he was studying, Marie Claire Wolf, whose partner also has a PhD from IDS, had not one but two children during the course of her PhD! Marie Claire’s thesis is entitled ‘We Never Let Our Guard Down to Get Ahead’ which explores the wellbeing of women participating in the Fundacion Paraguaya poverty alleviation programme.
Also graduating was Devanik Saha, who was celebrating with his wife Kaavya, who he met at IDS in 2016 while they were both studying for their Master’s. A graduate of MA Gender, whilst researching maternal health for his dissertation he observed there was little focus on men and ways they can participate. His thesis, ‘Taali Do Haath Se Bajti Hai’ (It takes two to tango) therefore explored men’s involvement in antenatal care in India, where he did fieldwork for six months.
“I am emotional to be moving away from IDS, as it has such great significance for me personally as well as professionally,” said Devanik. The next step in Devanik and Kaavya’s jounrey will be moving to Wivenhoe in Essex, so he can take up a role as Post Doctoral Research Officer, and Kaavya is planning to start her PhD.
Graduation is one of the highlights of our year, a celebration not just of the hard work and dedication of our Master’s and PhD students, but of their friends, family and extended networks, who supported them through the highs and lows of their studies. The most recent cohort of graduates will be joining a prestigious network of alumni – of people making a difference in their communities around the globe. IDS is proud to be a place that brings people together with a shared passion, resulting in professional connections, lifelong friendships, and as this cohort of graduates demonstrates, even marriages.
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