Network for Advanced Study of Pakistan (NASP) Fellowship

Applications to the 2024-25 NASP Fellowship are now open.

Indicate Your Interest Here

Programme Overview

The Network for Advanced Study of Pakistan (NASP) aims to create high quality scholarship and knowledge of Pakistan by nurturing new generations of analysts in academia, think tanks, media and industry. The fellowship will create a cross-disciplinary community of scholars and a body-of-knowledge that will inform policy, strategy, economics, technology and society.

The NASP Fellowship

The NASP Fellowship offers opportunities for analysts and scholars to work under the co-guidance of foremost experts and work towards a publication in the leading journals in the field. This includes a three-day conference in Bengaluru. In addition, a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh will be awarded to a select number of papers determined by the jury. The duration of the fellowship is 10 months.


Who Should Apply?

NASP invites applications from researchers from any background, including from universities, research institutes, media, government services and industry, who are enthusiastic about undertaking fresh research on Pakistan.

For this year’s Fellowship, we encourage research proposals on Pakistan studies in these domains: Macroeconomy and Public Finance; Technology, State Bank of Pakistan; Startups & Businesses; Defence Capabilities; Geopolitics of Pakistan; Politics of Water & Land in Pakistan; Public & Private Capital Markets; Civil-Military Relations; Sub-National Politics; Judicial System; University & School System, and Public Policy & Governance.

Prospective fellows must be Indian citizens, have at least an undergraduate degree and be proficient in English.

NASP Fellowship Process

Prospective fellows must submit a brief research proposal demonstrating their interest and capability to complete the project. The proposal (2000 words maximum) should clearly state the current gaps in research and how the author(s) would approach the issue. Along with the research proposal submission, author(s) must also send a past writing sample, either published or unpublished, on any topic that is more than 1000 words.

Up to three authors can submit a joint proposal. Multidisciplinary approaches and collaborations are encouraged.

Selected applicants will be invited to join the fellowship, assigned mentors and projects. The best research output will be rewarded with cash prizes and commendations.

Timeline

The application window for the second cohort of NASP Fellowship is now open.

  • April 17th - Call for Indication of Interest

  • May 31st –  Research proposal submission deadline

  • June 21st - June 28th - Interview Round 1 screening

  • June 29th - Notification of selected research proposal

  • July 1st – Start of NASP fellowship

  • September 15th - Review of interim draft paper

  • September 18th - Round 2 screening

  • October 15th - Review of pre-conference draft paper

  • November 15th-17th - 3 day academic conference

  • January 31st - Submission of final draft paper

  • March 1st - Selection & award of best papers by an independent academic panel

Mentors

Prof. Sumit Ganguly

Distinguished Professor, Department of Political Science, Indiana University Bloomington

Dr. Ayesha Siddiqa

Senior Research Fellow, Department of War Studies, Kings College London

Dr. T.C.A Raghavan

Former Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan

Lt General (Dr) Prakash Menon

Director, Strategic Studies Programme, Takshashila Institution

Pranay Kotasthane

Deputy Director, Takshashila Institution

Dr. Aparna Pande

Research Fellow, Hudson Institute

Anand Arni

Distinguished Fellow, Takshashila Institution

Prof. Aqil Shah

Adjunct Associate Professor, Georgetown University

Meet the Fellows from the Pioneer Cohort

  • Aishwarya Verma

    MSc in International Relations, London School of Economics and Political Science

  • Anakha S Thampy

    MA International Studies student, Symbiosis School of International Studies

  • Arpan A Chakravarty

    Contributing Editor, The Pulse India & Young Leader (Indo-Pacific), The Pacific Forum, CSIS

  • Bashir Ali Abbas

    Research Associate, Council for Strategic and Defense Research, New Delhi

  • Dr. Kaustav Padmapati

    Assistant Professor (Senior Scale), School of Modern Media, UPES, Dehradun

  • Manas Priya

    Independent researcher & Sudent, Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapeeth

  • Maria Sony

    MA International Studies student, Symbiosis School of International Studies

  • Palak Singh

    PhD Student, Department of Political Science, Banaras Hindu University

  • Rahul Lad

    Senior Research Fellow, Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune

  • Rohit Kulkarni

    Lawyer, Geopolitics Researcher & Student, MA Security & Defence Laws, NALSAR, Hyderabad

  • Dr. Roshni Sengupta

    Associate Professor, School of Modern Media, UPES, Dehradun

  • Rushali Saha

    Senior Research Associate, Council for Strategic and Defence Research, New Delhi

  • Shourya Gori

    M.A International Studies Student, Symbiosis School of International Studies

  • Sneha Sengupta

    M.A International Studies Student, Symbiosis School of International Studies

  • Subhashish Dutta

    Director Architecture, Fidelity Investments, Bangalore

Pioneer NASP Fellowship Winners Announced