Call for Applications for the Morvarid Guiv Graduate Fellowship in Zoroastrian Studies
The Pourdavoud Center for the Study of the Iranian World announces a call for applications for the Morvarid Guiv Graduate Fellowship in Zoroastrian Studies. This fellowship is intended to be awarded to graduate students whose works encompass different facets of Zoroastrian studies, that is, the Zoroastrian religion, its ancient history, languages, and scriptures.
In its inaugural year, up to four successful applicants will be awarded with a Morvarid Guiv Graduate Fellowship in Zoroastrian Studies in the amount of $3,000, which shall be disbursed in $1,000 increments over the course of Fall Quarter 2020, Winter Quarter 2021, and Spring Quarter 2021.
Eligible recipients are any full-time, UCLA-enrolled graduate students in good academic standing whose work pertains to Zoroastrian studies. To apply, students should submit in a single, succinct PDF document the following as part of their application package:
- A cover page containing the student’s full name, UID, department, program of study, year of study, and email address;
- A paragraph explaining how this fellowship will support the student’s education and research for the upcoming academic year (2020–2021)—including courses the candidate proposes to take in Old Iranian and Zoroastrian studies;
- If applicable, a short summary of the student’s anticipated or current dissertation topic, including research plans and progress;
- A current CV.
This PDF application package should be submitted to Dr. Marissa Stevens, Assistant Director of the Pourdavoud Center, at stevensma@humnet.ucla.edu by August 15, 2020 at 5:00pm. Recipients shall be notified by Monday, August 31, 2020.
Recipients of this fellowship will be required to submit to the Pourdavoud Center a one-page summary of how this fellowship benefited their research and education during the 2020–21 academic year and detail dissertation progress made during the fellowship tenure.
About Morvarid Guiv Graduate Fellowship in Zoroastrian Studies
The Morvarid Guiv Graduate Fellowship in Zoroastrian Studies was established at the Pourdavoud Center in 2018, thanks to a gift from the Trust of Morvarid Guiv. It is named after the late Iranian philanthropist Morvarid Guiv and endeavors to support graduate students working on all aspects of Zoroastrian studies at UCLA. The gift secured additional matching support from the UCLA Chancellor’s Centennial Scholars Match program.
The Zoroastrian religion is one of the oldest world religions and was the dominant faith of the Iranian World (including Asia Minor and Central Asia) prior to the rise of Islam. The Fellowship enables UCLA’s long-established doctoral Program of Iranian Studies to attract and train new generations of experts exploring the many facets of this influential, ancient Iranian religion that continues to thrive today—further reinforcing UCLA as the premier destination for scholars working on ancient Iran.
Born in Iran, Morvarid Guiv and her husband Rustam Guiv were successful businesspeople who helped Zoroastrian communities by building schools, low-income residential projects, and Zoroastrian community centers. When they immigrated to the U.S., they founded Zoroastrian community centers in the U.S., Canada, and Australia.
Graduate students awarded the fellowship will benefit from the presence of a strong faculty specializing in ancient Iran and the ancient world at the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, and from the unparalleled resources of the Pourdavoud Center.
Please click here to download the call for applications.