The American Political Science Association is pleased to announce the Doctoral Dissertation Research Grant (DDRIG) Awardees for 2022. The APSA DDRIG program provides support to enhance and improve the conduct of doctoral dissertation research in political science. Awards support basic research which is theoretically derived and empirically oriented.
- Akshay Govind Dixit, Harvard University
- Anna Mikkelborg, University of California, Berkeley
- Deepika Padmanabhan, Yale University
- Erika Ricci, University of Central Florida
- Esra Gules-Guctas, Rockefeller College
- Eui Young Noh, Vanderbilt University
- Fred Shaia, Brown University
- Furkan Cakmak, Washington State University
- Guoer Liu, University of Michigan
- Hannah Early Bagdanov, University of Notre Dame
- Hilary Izatt, University of Michigan
- Jeremy Siow, Washington University of St. Louis
- Jiaqi Lu, University of Wisconsin, Madison
- Jiseon Chang, University of Texas, Austin
- Julian Enrique Gerez, Columbia University
- Keng Chi Chang, University of California, San Diego
- Mahesh Acharya, University of Mississippi
- Manuel Melendez Sanchez, Harvard University
- Michael Auslen, Columbia University
- Michael Kriner, Cornell University
- Moritz Bondeli, Yale University
- Nicole Wilson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Peter McLaughlin, University of Oklahoma
- Salih Noor, Northwestern University
- Soohyun Cho, Ohio State University
- Warren Snead, Northwestern University
Akshay Govind Dixit is a PhD student of Political Economy & Government at Harvard University. Prior to graduate school, Akshay worked as a Research Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School. He holds a Master’s degree in International & Development Economics from Yale University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Presidency College in Kolkata, India.
Anna Mikkelborg is a PhD candidate at the University of California, Berkeley. She holds a BA in Law, Societies and Justice & Political Science from the University of Washington.
Deepika Padmanabhan is a PhD candidate in the Department of Political Science at Yale University. She holds a BA in Political Science from St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai and Master’s degrees from the School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University and the Department of Politics, New York University.
Erika Ricci is a PhD Candidate in Security Studies and Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) at the University of Central Florida’s School of Politics, Security, and International Affairs (SPSIA). She holds a BA in International Relations and a MA in European and International Policies at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan.
Esra Gules-Guctas is a PhD candidate at Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Public Policy. She received her law degree from the Istanbul University School of Law, an MA in political science from Brooklyn College, and an LLM from the Cardozo School of Law.
Eui Young Noh is a PhD candidate at Vanderbilt University. Prior to her doctoral studies, she received a BA in political science from Seoul University.
Fred Shaia is a Presidential Fellow and PhD Candidate in the Department of Political Science at Brown University. Fred holds a Master of Arts (A.M.) in Political Science from Brown University and a Master in Public Policy (M.P.P.) from Harvard University. Before graduate school, Fred spent several years working for international organizations.
Furkan Cakmak received his PhD in Political Science at the Washington State University, where he also received his MA. Prior to WSU, he received his undergraduate degree in Political Science and International Relations from Bogazici University in Istanbul, Turkey.
Guoer Liu is a PhD candidate in Political Science and Scientific Computing at the University of Michigan. She received her bachelor’s in social sciences from the University of Hong Kong and a master’s in international development from the London School of Economics.
Hannah Early Bagdanov is a PhD Candidate at the University of Notre Dame. Hannah holds an MA in Political Science from the University of Notre Dame as well as a BA in Political Science from Westmont College.
Hilary Izatt is a PhD candidate in Political Science at the University of Michigan. Hilary holds a B.A. in Political Science from Brigham Young University, an M.A. in Asian politics from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, and an M.A. in Political Science from Georgetown University. Before pursuing her PhD, Hilary taught undergraduate courses in comparative and American politics as a lecturer at the State University of New York.
Jeremy Siow is a PhD candidate in the Department of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis. In addition to the APSA-DDRIG, his research has received generous support from the Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity & Equity (CRE2) and the Weidenbaum Center on the Economy, Government, and Public Policy at Washington University in St. Louis. Prior to his PhD program, Jeremy graduated with an M.A. in Political Science and International Studies from Yonsei University, as well as a Bachelor’s degree (B.Soc.Sci) in Political Science from the National University in Singapore.
Jiaqi Lu is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Political Science and Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies (joint Ph.D. program) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He received a BA in Sociology and MA in International Public Affairs (2014) from UW-Madison. Before coming back to Madison for his PhD in 2018, he was a research analyst at the Brookings Institution (2015-2018), where he worked on energy and climate policy.
Jiseon Chang is a PhD candidate in the Department of Government at the University of Texas at Austin. She completed two degrees from Yonsei University (Seoul, South Korea): a bachelor’s in economics and international studies in Underwood International College, and a master’s concentrating on international development cooperation and international trade and economic development in the Graduate School of International Studies.
Julian Gerez is a Ph.D. candidate in Political Science at Columbia University. Originally from Colombia, Julian graduated with a B.A. in political science from Northwestern University.
Keng-Chi Chang is a PhD candidate at the University of California, San Diego. He received a BA and a MA in Economics from National Taiwan University.
Mahesh Acharya is a PhD candidate at the University of Mississippi. He received a MA in Rural Development from Tribhuwan University, Nepal, and a BS (Physics) from Tri-Chandra College, Nepal.
Manuel Meléndez-Sánchez is a Ph.D. candidate in Political Science at Harvard University and a USIP-Minerva Peace and Security Scholar at the United States Institute of Peace. He also received his bachelor’s in Government at Harvard University and a master’s in Politics from the University of Oxford.
Michael Auslen is a PhD candidate in political science at Columbia University. He also earned an MPP from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and a BA in Journalism and Political Science from Indiana University. Previously, he worked as a journalist covering state and local politics for the Tampa Bay Times, Miami Herald, and Indianapolis Star.
Michael Kriner is a PhD candidate at Cornell university. He holds a BA in global studies from Providence College and an MS in global affairs from New York University.
Moritz Bondeli is a PhD candidate at Yale University. He holds a BA in political science from the university of Lausanne (Switzerland), and an MPhil in European politics and society from Brasenose College, Oxford.
Nicole Wilson is a PhD candidate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Prior to her doctoral studies, she received a bachelor’s in sociology from the University of Georgia and a master’s in justice, law, and society from American University.
Peter McLaughlin is a PhD candidate in the department of political science at the University of Oklahoma and a research fellow at the Carl Albert Congressional Research and Studies Center. In addition to the APSA DDRIG, Peter’s research is supported by the Carrie Chapman Catt center for Women and Politics and OU’s Dodge Family Research Fellowship. Previously, Peter served as the research director for Vote Smart, a nationwide voter education nonprofit. He holds a BA in government and international studies from Dartmouth College and an MPA from Drake University.
Salih Noor is a PhD Candidate in Political Science at Northwestern University. His research has also received support from the Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education, the Social Science Research Council, and, at Northwestern University, the Buffett Institute for Global Studies and the Program of African Studies. Previously, Salih earned a B.A in Politics Science (distinction) from University of Asmara, Eritrea, and an M.A. in Political Science (mit Auszeichnung) from the Osnabrück University in Germany.
Soohyun Cho is a Ph.D. candidate in Political Science at Ohio State University. Before joining Ohio State University, she received a B.A. and an M.A. in Political Science from Seoul National University, South Korea. Her work has been supported by the Fulbright Fellowship, the Presidential Fellow at Ohio State University, and the APSA Centennial Center Research Grant.
Warren Snead is a PhD candidate in the Political Science Department at Northwestern University. Before attending Northwestern, Warren received his BA from Sewanee: The University of the South in political science and taught history and civics in Virginia Beach, VA.