Please Get Meriam to Birkbeck!
Donation protected
Short version:
P.S: I'm not Brighton or UK-based anymore but have to use my old UK address to be eligible to crowdfund
Hi everyone, some of you might know me, some of you might not:
- I am a Moroccan person of Amazigh (Berber) descent and have a Master’s in International Relations from the University of Sussex (that I received funding to do).
- I have been trying to get funding for a PhD since November 2016, and that has finally happened.
- My PhD project is a unique reconstruction of Moroccan state formation that also theorises nationalism in the Global South from a different perspective.
- The Birkbeck Studentship I am offered doesn’t cover all my fees. I can’t save up that much money within the time-frame I have. Please help me bring this project to light.
Longer version
Why do I need money?
After two and a half years of writing and re-writing a PhD proposal, doing 19 PhD applications in total, and dealing with multiple rejections, a week ago, I finally received my long-awaited dream PhD offer – a Studentship from the School of Social Sciences, History, and Politics to do a PhD in Politics at Birkbeck, University of London (Yaaaaaaaay!)
I am pleasantly surprised I got this Studentship for various reasons. Although I grew up in Casablanca, I am originally from Tiswit, a small Berber-majority village near Midelt. In doing a PhD I would not only be the first in my family, but also first in the village, to do so. I want to be able to set a good example for younger girls in the area, because illiteracy still has a huge impact on our communities.
The selection process was very competitive and the studentship was open to UK, EU and international students, and there was only ONE available.
Unfortunately, although the Studentship is generous, it only covers fees at the UK/EU level, and I am left with a deficit. As an international student in the UK, I have to pay at least 2.5 times the amount a UK/EU student does. I need to pay the ‘international’ difference.
As happy as I was to have won the Studentship, the initial YAAAY! was soon replaced with fear of losing this opportunity. As much as I wish to rely entirely on my hard work and good will, sometimes we find ourselves in situations where we need help.
THIS IS WHY I AM ASKING FOR YOUR HELP, SCROLLERS. The situation of working-class international students in the UK is dire:
- Astronomically high tuition fees. Birkbeck, one of the cheapest places for an international student to study, charges £12625 a year for full-time international students, and my Studentship Only covers £4327 of that.
Please see the fees section on this page: http://www.bbk.ac.uk/study/2019/phd/programmes/RMPPOLTC/#fees-info
- The second difficulty is the Home Office. They ask to see the full amount of tuition fees for one year in order to apply for a student visa [so that would be the amount my studentship does not cover]. It needs to have been held in my bank account for 28 days before I apply for the student visa, or I need to pay it up front before the visa application. These are the only two options available for me.
This becomes harder when the average annual wages in Morocco are under £4500.
There are no educational or government loans that I can take, either from Morocco or the UK.
What is the PhD about?
My PhD project is a combination of Politics, History, and Sociology where I plan to closely analyse how inequalities in the form of social class, sovereign territoriality, and geopolitics [imperial and colonial relations in relation to diplomatic history] have resulted in forming the modern Moroccan state, going from 1880s to 1970s. I am passionate to investigate how the intersections of these three elements have shaped the modern world we live in. I will be examining three main questions:
- How does the meaning of ‘the international’ and ‘the national’ change across different periods of history?
- How and when did capitalism emerge in Morocco?
- How has the interaction of class and rivalry in the region affected, if at all, the growth of nationalism?
Why is this important?
The development of Morocco as a nation is a complex process that has impacted different layers of society. This project wants to look at the bottom layers, the forgotten ones. Instead of focusing on the state itself, Sultans and what have you, this project looks at the many, not the few. If you want to hear stories about pirates, Muslim merchants and diplomats, Jewish Moroccan merchants of old, rebellious Berbers in the Atlas Mountains, and working-class women fighting the oppression of the state, please consider donating or sharing this crowdfunding page.
Every little bit helps
North Africa is witnessing important social changes, from Morocco to Algeria (#yetne7aw ga3). This project looks at similar social changes across history. It will use past struggles to inform us about current inequalities, but also address the challenge of the growth of right-wing nationalism, that concerns countries across the globe.
I will to use this opportunity as way to address and challenge this, and support broader social change in the region.
How much money do I get from the Studentship and how will I use the crowdfunded money?
SSHP Studentship covers my fees at the EU/UK level at a rate of £4327, and a generous stipend (research council rates) of £17009 per year, including London weighting and lasting for the duration of the PhD.
Although the stipend is generous, I need show evidence of the remaining fees to the Home Office as the Stipend doesn’t count as Fees.
This money I get from this campaign will go directly to paying the remaining Birkbeck fees.
I have to pay £8298 on university fees. I get a 10% discount through University College Union, so that becomes £7468.2
The amount I am trying to raise exactly is £6000.
The NHS Immigration Health Surcharge, and the rest of the university fees + visa expenses and expenses of the move to London I am taking care of with the help of my supportive family. I am also continuing to pick up a range of side jobs now to save up whatever I can, and explore further funding options in Morocco.
If you can’t help with donations, please share the page as that would also be incredibly helpful!
When do I need the money?
Ideally late August at most (fingers crossed!). My course starts on 1 October so that gives me just about enough time.
On a Final Note!
Morocco is a post-colony, which means that education suffers and opportunities to support students undertaking research are scarce.
I aim to help my alma matter, University Hassan II establish better academic collaborations so that maybe one day, students in my part of the world will have more options other than crowdfunding campaigns! I also aim to start a podcast documenting both my application and my PhD journey with people in similar positions.
At the moment, I am an aspiring young researcher with an offer and funding, but in a position where even with that, I will struggle to take it up. It is through this campaign that I am trying to get help ONLY for this year, as my time and options (even when it comes to seeking smaller grants) are very limited.
For that reason, I am asking all people with the means and inclination, friends, comrades, and kind strangers, to help in any way, sharing, donating, sending a word of encouragement, because even the slightest help pushes the project forward.
P.S: As a way to say to thank you, I am happy to offer translation/transcription services in any of the four languages I speak (French, English, Arabic, Tamazight), a Moroccan cookery class, or teach you Arabic calligraphy and the Tifinagh script (looks like this: ⵜⴰⵏⵎⵉⵔⵜ) to anyone who is interested
THANK YOU AND PLEASE KNOW THAT WHETHER YOU ARE DONATING, SHARING SO THAT OTHER PEOPLE CAN DONATE, OR BEING EMOTIONALLY SUPPORTIVE WITH CAT GIFS, YOU ARE MAKING ONE (POTENTIAL) SOCIAL SCIENTIST VERY HAPPY!
P.S: I'm not Brighton or UK-based anymore but have to use my old UK address to be eligible to crowdfund
Hi everyone, some of you might know me, some of you might not:
- I am a Moroccan person of Amazigh (Berber) descent and have a Master’s in International Relations from the University of Sussex (that I received funding to do).
- I have been trying to get funding for a PhD since November 2016, and that has finally happened.
- My PhD project is a unique reconstruction of Moroccan state formation that also theorises nationalism in the Global South from a different perspective.
- The Birkbeck Studentship I am offered doesn’t cover all my fees. I can’t save up that much money within the time-frame I have. Please help me bring this project to light.
Longer version
Why do I need money?
After two and a half years of writing and re-writing a PhD proposal, doing 19 PhD applications in total, and dealing with multiple rejections, a week ago, I finally received my long-awaited dream PhD offer – a Studentship from the School of Social Sciences, History, and Politics to do a PhD in Politics at Birkbeck, University of London (Yaaaaaaaay!)
I am pleasantly surprised I got this Studentship for various reasons. Although I grew up in Casablanca, I am originally from Tiswit, a small Berber-majority village near Midelt. In doing a PhD I would not only be the first in my family, but also first in the village, to do so. I want to be able to set a good example for younger girls in the area, because illiteracy still has a huge impact on our communities.
The selection process was very competitive and the studentship was open to UK, EU and international students, and there was only ONE available.
Unfortunately, although the Studentship is generous, it only covers fees at the UK/EU level, and I am left with a deficit. As an international student in the UK, I have to pay at least 2.5 times the amount a UK/EU student does. I need to pay the ‘international’ difference.
As happy as I was to have won the Studentship, the initial YAAAY! was soon replaced with fear of losing this opportunity. As much as I wish to rely entirely on my hard work and good will, sometimes we find ourselves in situations where we need help.
THIS IS WHY I AM ASKING FOR YOUR HELP, SCROLLERS. The situation of working-class international students in the UK is dire:
- Astronomically high tuition fees. Birkbeck, one of the cheapest places for an international student to study, charges £12625 a year for full-time international students, and my Studentship Only covers £4327 of that.
Please see the fees section on this page: http://www.bbk.ac.uk/study/2019/phd/programmes/RMPPOLTC/#fees-info
- The second difficulty is the Home Office. They ask to see the full amount of tuition fees for one year in order to apply for a student visa [so that would be the amount my studentship does not cover]. It needs to have been held in my bank account for 28 days before I apply for the student visa, or I need to pay it up front before the visa application. These are the only two options available for me.
This becomes harder when the average annual wages in Morocco are under £4500.
There are no educational or government loans that I can take, either from Morocco or the UK.
What is the PhD about?
My PhD project is a combination of Politics, History, and Sociology where I plan to closely analyse how inequalities in the form of social class, sovereign territoriality, and geopolitics [imperial and colonial relations in relation to diplomatic history] have resulted in forming the modern Moroccan state, going from 1880s to 1970s. I am passionate to investigate how the intersections of these three elements have shaped the modern world we live in. I will be examining three main questions:
- How does the meaning of ‘the international’ and ‘the national’ change across different periods of history?
- How and when did capitalism emerge in Morocco?
- How has the interaction of class and rivalry in the region affected, if at all, the growth of nationalism?
Why is this important?
The development of Morocco as a nation is a complex process that has impacted different layers of society. This project wants to look at the bottom layers, the forgotten ones. Instead of focusing on the state itself, Sultans and what have you, this project looks at the many, not the few. If you want to hear stories about pirates, Muslim merchants and diplomats, Jewish Moroccan merchants of old, rebellious Berbers in the Atlas Mountains, and working-class women fighting the oppression of the state, please consider donating or sharing this crowdfunding page.
Every little bit helps
North Africa is witnessing important social changes, from Morocco to Algeria (#yetne7aw ga3). This project looks at similar social changes across history. It will use past struggles to inform us about current inequalities, but also address the challenge of the growth of right-wing nationalism, that concerns countries across the globe.
I will to use this opportunity as way to address and challenge this, and support broader social change in the region.
How much money do I get from the Studentship and how will I use the crowdfunded money?
SSHP Studentship covers my fees at the EU/UK level at a rate of £4327, and a generous stipend (research council rates) of £17009 per year, including London weighting and lasting for the duration of the PhD.
Although the stipend is generous, I need show evidence of the remaining fees to the Home Office as the Stipend doesn’t count as Fees.
This money I get from this campaign will go directly to paying the remaining Birkbeck fees.
I have to pay £8298 on university fees. I get a 10% discount through University College Union, so that becomes £7468.2
The amount I am trying to raise exactly is £6000.
The NHS Immigration Health Surcharge, and the rest of the university fees + visa expenses and expenses of the move to London I am taking care of with the help of my supportive family. I am also continuing to pick up a range of side jobs now to save up whatever I can, and explore further funding options in Morocco.
If you can’t help with donations, please share the page as that would also be incredibly helpful!
When do I need the money?
Ideally late August at most (fingers crossed!). My course starts on 1 October so that gives me just about enough time.
On a Final Note!
Morocco is a post-colony, which means that education suffers and opportunities to support students undertaking research are scarce.
I aim to help my alma matter, University Hassan II establish better academic collaborations so that maybe one day, students in my part of the world will have more options other than crowdfunding campaigns! I also aim to start a podcast documenting both my application and my PhD journey with people in similar positions.
At the moment, I am an aspiring young researcher with an offer and funding, but in a position where even with that, I will struggle to take it up. It is through this campaign that I am trying to get help ONLY for this year, as my time and options (even when it comes to seeking smaller grants) are very limited.
For that reason, I am asking all people with the means and inclination, friends, comrades, and kind strangers, to help in any way, sharing, donating, sending a word of encouragement, because even the slightest help pushes the project forward.
P.S: As a way to say to thank you, I am happy to offer translation/transcription services in any of the four languages I speak (French, English, Arabic, Tamazight), a Moroccan cookery class, or teach you Arabic calligraphy and the Tifinagh script (looks like this: ⵜⴰⵏⵎⵉⵔⵜ) to anyone who is interested
THANK YOU AND PLEASE KNOW THAT WHETHER YOU ARE DONATING, SHARING SO THAT OTHER PEOPLE CAN DONATE, OR BEING EMOTIONALLY SUPPORTIVE WITH CAT GIFS, YOU ARE MAKING ONE (POTENTIAL) SOCIAL SCIENTIST VERY HAPPY!
Organiser
Meriam Mabrouk
Organiser
England
