Share Profile
DANIYAL AHMED
Aspiration Statement
I want to pursue a career in humanities academia, particularly anything associated with philosophy. To that end, I am determined to attain a PhD as my terminal degree.
Core Skills
- Data Analysis, Historical and Digital Archiving, Proficient English Reading and Writing, Qualitative Research Methods
Academic Awards / Achievements
- Dean's List 2022
Experience
Leadership / Meta-curricular
- GSCP STRP I GSCP STRP II
Internship / Volunteer Work
- Research Associate, Leadership Adventures (February March 2025) Independent Undergraduate Researcher, Habib University (June November 2024) Research Assistant, Habib University (June October 2023)
Final Year Project
Project Title
Blat: An Alternative to Social Capital?
Description
This thesis looks into the Blat Gift economy prevalent in the former Soviet Union, and uses its findings to critique discourses on social capital in Western capitalist societies. The thesis scrutinizes blat from its dynamics, telos and structure to its institutional causes in the Soviet political economy. the project has three main aims: 1) to critique social capital theory and help provide a more comprehensive picture regarding the nature of gift economies 2) to contribute towards the scholarship on blat, particularly by shedding light on its institutional causes 3) to contribute towards a broader understanding of everyday life in the Soviet Union, a subject with scarce academic discourses and resources.