Theorising in PhD Research
The Centre for Lebanese Studies at the Lebanese American University and
the Faculty of Education at the University of Cambridge
invite PhD candidates based in Lebanon to participate in
“Theorising in PhD Research”
Three-day residential retreat
5-7 December 2022
Applications are accepted until 16 November 2022
This residency is part of the British Academy Bilateral Chair Programme
About the “PhD Retreat”:
The retreat is aimed at PhD candidates based in or working on Lebanon focusing on social science, humanities and cognate disciplines. We welcome candidates at all stages of their PhD research conducting research on Lebanon and other Arabic speaking countries.
The retreat will discuss questions relating to how we use theory and theorise in our research and the implications for politics of knowledge production. While theorising in many disciplines may be presented as an abstract practice, in this course, we focus on theorising as an act of knowledge production even in our daily lives.
Invited speakers and mentors who will be working with the PhD candidates are scholars from different disciplinary backgrounds whose work has been prominent on critical theorising in their fields. The speakers/mentors will reflect on what theorising means to them and how their approach to knowledge production and theorising have developed since they first started their careers. We aim to go beyond the textbook discussion on methodology and thesis writing: we will discuss the tacit knowledge on theorising that researchers build throughout their journeys. To this end, we aim to gain new insights into how knowledge production takes place, and particularly knowledge that is not confined to mainstream euro-centric theorising and epistemologies.
Eligibility:
PhD candidates from Lebanon and other Arabic speaking countries, working in social sciences and humanities (and cognate disciplines) and whose work is focused on Lebanon or any other global majority country.
Application and Selection Process:
We invite interested PhD candidates to present their work and become part of the conversation by sending an email to [email protected] with “PhD Retreat” in the subject line by November 16, 2022 that includes:
- Cover letter mentioning the language (Arabic or English) you prefer for written work and discussion and any special needs or dietary requirements.
- CV including education details, research, and work experience
- Statement of interest (1-2 pages) that addresses the following questions:
- What does theorising mean to you?
- What interests you about the idea of collectively thinking about and discussing theorising?
- How do you hope to benefit from your participation in this retreat?
After completing the retreat application, selected participants will be submitting a short text – 3000-5000 words (in Arabic or English) to be presented during the retreat.
Based on this written text, the participants will make a short presentation to allow for a collective approach to peer and mentors’ review and support.
The submitted texts can be a PhD proposal, a draft chapter, a text from a Master’s dissertation that the participant is building on in their current research or an op-ed or shorter text that will be developed into an academic text.
Speakers/mentors:
Jasmin Lilian Diab, Director of the Institute for Migration Studies, Lebanese American University.
Vivienne (V.) Badaan, Assistant Professor Psychology, American University of Beirut.
Adnan Al Amin, Professor of Sociology of Education, Lebanese University.
Funding:
Accommodation for three nights, meals and transport within Lebanon will be covered.
Inquiries:
For any clarifications or questions, please contact us on:
Emails: [email protected] and [email protected]