PhD candidate Nuam Hatzaw has won an Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) doctoral training award through the Scottish Graduate School for Arts and Humanities (SGSAH). Image Nuam is researching the experiences, beliefs, and practices of Zomi women in Chin State, Myanmar, southeast Asia. The award will cover her tuition, provide a monthly stipend and fund fieldwork expenses in Chin State. Markers of excellence AHRC SGSAH describes its funded PhD projects as “markers of excellence and originality, enabled by environments where excellent research is supported and conducted.” In the past two years, three of our students have won this award: Nuam Hatzaw, Nathan Hood and Nico Brice-Bennett. Nuam says: “I'm ecstatic to be one of the recipients for the AHRC Doctoral Training Partnership award through SGSAH. I'm very grateful to SGSAH, my co-supervisors Dr Emma Wild-Wood and Dr Alex Chow and to Professor Brian Stanley for all their help in this competition. “This funding means a lot to me - not only is it obviously a massive relief to have my tuition and living costs covered, it's also great to have my research recognised.” Exploring inequality and faith “I'm researching Zomi women's faith lives in Chin State, Myanmar - a context marked by extreme poverty and inequality,” Nuam continues. “Chin State is the poorest region in Myanmar, and falls far below the rest of the country in terms of its social and economic development. What's more, Zomi women occupy a second-class status in society, which adds a gendered dimension to the daily struggles of life there. “With this funding, I'll be able to spend nine months in Chin State, living with and among Zomi women, researching the ways in which their faith helps and empowers them in difficult circumstances. “My MTh degree programme is in World Christianity, so I'm particularly interested in what Christianity looks like in this context - whether or not there's more emphasis on an image of God or Jesus as victorious over struggle, for example. “I'm Zomi myself but I grew up in Britain, so on a personal level, I'm looking forward to spending time in the place of my birth and reconnecting with my roots.” Distinction in World Christianity Nuam achieved a distinction in her Masters programme here in Edinburgh and received a School of Divinity Research Scholarship in the first year of her PhD. “I was initially drawn to New College as it's the only place in the UK that offers World Christianity,” she explains. “It has the academics, the resources, and the reputation I needed for my research interests. I chose to stay at New College for my PhD because of the warmth of welcome I've found here, the communal ethos and the immeasurable support I've received.” Links Scholarships and student funding Arts and Humanities Research Council Scottish Graduate School for Arts and Humanities This article was published on 2024-03-19
