Yerza Hussain announced regional winner (Americas) at the Global Undergraduate Awards.
What is the Global Undergraduate Awards?
The Global Undergraduate Awards, founded in Ireland in 2008, has grown to become the world's largest academic awards program for undergraduate students. Often referred to as the "Junior Nobel Prize," the GUA invites submissions across 25 categories, spanning sciences, humanities, business, and creative arts. This year, the program received over 2,500 submissions from students across 290 institutions worldwide.
Students submit essays which then undergo rigorous blind review by panels of expert judges from around the world in academica, industry, as well as previous winners of the award. They assess submissions based on their originality, methodology, and significance within their respective fields.
Submissions that rank in the top 10% of each category are designated as Highly Commended. From these, judges select Global Winners for each category, as well as Regional Winners across seven geographical regions: Africa & the Middle East, Asia, Europe, Ireland, Oceania, The Americas, and the UK.
As a Regional Winner, Yerza will be invited to attend the annual UA Global Summit in Dublin, Ireland, where she will have the opportunity to present her work, participate in workshops, and network with fellow awardees and academics from around the world. Winners in Ireland have their work published and shared around the world.
Q: How did you come to write and submit this paper to the Global Undergraduate Awards?
Yerza Hussain: This paper originated as my capstone project for Professor Monique Tschofen's ENG 400 course. The course's focus on critical theory and cultural studies provided the perfect foundation for exploring complex ideas about power, ideology, and resistance. Professor Tschofen's guidance and feedback were invaluable in shaping my work to push the boundaries of conventional academic writing. Submitting to the Global Undergraduate Awards felt like a natural progression - an opportunity to contribute to global academic discourse. I was drawn to the program's emphasis on interdisciplinary work and its global reach, which I felt aligned well with the themes of my essay.
Q: Your essay uses a non-traditional form. Why?
Yerza Hussain: I chose to structure my essay as a glossary, inspired by Eve Tuck and C. Ree's "A Glossary of Haunting." This non-traditional form allowed me to explore the spectral nature of power and ideology in a way that mirrors their elusive and pervasive qualities. By breaking down complex concepts into interconnected entries, I aimed to create a more accessible and engaging way to discuss these abstract ideas. The glossary format allowed me to draw connections between various theoretical frameworks and real-world examples, highlighting the multifaceted nature of cultural and social power dynamics.
Q: What role will this work in literary and cultural theory play in your future studies?
Yerza Hussain: This work has deepened my understanding of how literary and cultural theory can be applied to analyze contemporary social issues and power structures. Moving forward, I plan to expand on this work by further exploring how we can use innovative theoretical approaches to understand and address complex social issues. I'm particularly interested in pursuing graduate studies that will allow me to further investigate the intersections of cultural theory, digital humanities, and social justice. The recognition from the Global Undergraduate Awards has encouraged me to continue pushing boundaries in my academic work and has opened up new opportunities for collaboration with scholars from around the world.