The 4th Sociology Days Student Research Symposium, organized by the Department of Sociology at our University, was held on May 9–11, 2025, on our campus. With significant participation, the symposium also hosted the presentation of the Talal Asad and Al-Biruni Awards, which aim to encourage high-quality academic work at undergraduate and graduate levels. The awards were presented to the recipients during a ceremony held on Sunday, May 11, at the end of the symposium.
The Talal Asad Award, presented in the category of Best Graduate Thesis, was awarded to Akbar Mohammadi Kahrizeh for his thesis submitted in 2024, titled "The Politics of Religiosity and Secularism: Narratives from the West Azerbaijan, Iran." The award was presented to Kahrizeh by Prof. Dr. Peter van der Veer, Emeritus Director of the Max Planck Institute.
The evaluation committee consisted of Dr. Intissar Kherigi (Visiting Faculty Member, Ibn Haldun University), Dr. Şeyma Ayyıldız (Boğaziçi University), and Dr. Merve Reyhan Baygeldi (Ankara Police Academy). The recipient of the Best Graduate Thesis Award received a prize of 30,000 TL.
The Al-Biruni Award, presented in the category of Best Undergraduate Thesis, was awarded to Yunus Yeşil for his thesis titled "Identity Construction in the Relation of Trauma and Community Building: The Example of ‘Little Palestine’ in the Context of Chicago," submitted in 2024. The award was presented by Assoc. Prof. Ayşe Güç.
The evaluation committee for this award also included Dr. Intissar Kherigi (Visiting Faculty Member, Ibn Haldun University), Dr. Şeyma Ayyıldız (Boğaziçi University), and Dr. Merve Reyhan Baygeldi (Ankara Police Academy). The recipient of the Best Undergraduate Thesis Award received a prize of 20,000 TL.
