Fahad Ahmed, PhD Public Policy (’21)
After having worked extensively in leadership positions in the international and nonprofit sectors, Fahad Ahmad joined the PhD in Public Policy program with the hope to gain an in-depth understanding of how public policy is crafted.
“I gained so much more than that!” he says. “Yes, the program expanded my theoretical understanding of considerations that inform of public policy, but I also got an opportunity to form meaningful relationships with faculty members and other doctoral students at SPPA.”
“I am most grateful to my supervisor, Frances Abele, and committee members Susan Phillips and Jeffrey Monaghan (Criminology), who provided me with much-needed guidance, assurance and encouragement during the different stages of the PhD process — developing the proposal, conducting fieldwork, and of course, the arduous task of dissertation writing and preparing for the defence. I also learned a great deal by working with each of them on various research projects.”
Ahmad says the School provided a supportive research environment and allowed him the necessary flexibility to pursue his chosen dissertation topic on how national security policies of counter-radicalization impact the work of Muslim civil society organizations in Canada and the United Kingdom, and how these organizations develop strategies in response.
“I am also thankful to Graeme Auld, Jose Galdo, Saul Schwartz, and others in the faculty and staff who were enthusiastic about my research,” he says. “I am currently pursuing a postdoctoral fellowship at the Centre for Criminology and Sociolegal Studies at the University of Toronto with the hope I will be able to continue research and teaching that builds upon my academic interests and nonprofit experience.”