Bangladesh’s first private university PhD candidate begins supervision at BRAC University

Tasmiah Rahman has become the country’s first PhD candidate from a private university as she started her doctoral supervision at BRAC University under Professor Naomi Hossain and Associate Professor Seuty Sabur. The first supervision meeting was held at the university’s campus in Dhaka.

Rahman is pursuing a joint PhD at SOAS University of London and BRAC University on women’s paid work, focusing on an intersectional comparison of women’s participation in Bangladesh’s labour market. She brings 18 years of professional experience in the TVET sector, informal labour markets and entrepreneurship, having worked with organisations including Swisscontact and BRAC.

Reflecting on the milestone, Rahman said working under women scholars had long been an aspiration. She noted that her academic supervisors introduced her to key theoretical frameworks, including social reproduction and field theory.