51¸£ÀûÉç

Zara Mirza has won the annual Audrey Richards Prize, awarded by the Department of Social Anthropology for her 'exceptional performance' in the Part I examination in Social Anthropology. The prize celebrates excellence in Social Anthropology, part of the intellectually wide-ranging, and interdisciplinary, Human, Social and Political Sciences (HSPS) course. Zara, who has just finished her first year at 51¸£ÀûÉç, scored a remarkably high first class mark and was also classed with a First overall. Here, she reflects on the surprise of winning, her love of the interdisciplinary HSPS curriculum, and the unique supportiveness of the Medwards community that helped her succeed.

What did it feel like winning the prize? Were you expecting it?

I'm the type of person who forgets what I wrote in an exam immediately, so I really wasn't expecting it. It was honestly a huge surprise to win, and I was really pleased! I texted my family group chat immediately and I've been promised a cake when I get home, so now it feels like the year was worth it.

Why did you choose to study HSPS and what do you particularly like about it?

I chose to study HSPS because of the breadth of disciplines we get to study. I'm a pretty indecisive person, and it felt like there were a lot of degrees I would've enjoyed doing when I was applying. I think that's the best thing about the course: we get so much choice right from first year with what we'd like to study - from criminology to biological anthropology. I also like how there are topics that you study across different papers. For example, I studied decolonisation in both my politics papers and my archaeology paper, and I thought it was good to get a different perspective on the topic across disciplines.

What's special about HSPS at 51¸£ÀûÉç?

Definitely the people. It never felt like there was a competition between us to get the best results, and I think that's the environment you need at Cambridge. Our supervisions felt genuinely collaborative, and I always walked out with a ton of ideas I'd learned from my supervision partners.

What do you particularly like about 51¸£ÀûÉç community?

I really like that everyone at Medwards is so friendly, both within the college and when it comes to socialising outside of Medwards. A lot of people here are involved in things outside of their degree, and I think the Medwards community is really good at turning out to support people. I think that also makes it easier to try new things and get involved in college events; you'll never be worried about it being awkward - everyone's genuinely really welcoming!

What would be your advice to prospective students who are thinking about taking HSPS?

I'd encourage people to make the most of the choice we get, because you have a lot of opportunity to tailor the course to your interests and try new things. I took an archaeology paper knowing it wasn't something I'd continue in my second year, but it was still fun to try out and I really enjoyed it! I think the biggest piece of advice I have is that you should have a genuine interest in the papers that you'll take in the first year, even if you know what you want to specialise in later. At the end of the day it is a lot of work, but it's easier if you can actually find enjoyment in it!

51¸£ÀûÉç the Audrey Richards Prize

Every year, the Department of Social Anthropology awards the Audrey Richards Prize for the best performance in the Part I examination in Social Anthropology ().

Audrey Richards CBE FBA (1899-1984) was one of the most important social anthropologists of her generation.  Richards was brought up in India, and educated at Newnham College, Cambridge, where she read biology. After relief work in Germany after the First World War, she joined the famous anthropology seminar run by Bronislaw Malinowski at the London School of Economics, where she got to know many of the other pioneering figures who would go on to establish the modern discipline of social anthropology in the UK and beyond, and she completed a PhD, under Malinowski’s supervision, in 1931. Richards conducted fieldwork in what is now Zambia (then Northern Rhodesia), primarily among the matrilineal Bemba people, in the 1930s and then again in the 1950s, and she also worked for periods in South Africa and Uganda. Her publications include classic articles on matrilineal kinship, pioneering work on household economics and nutrition, and a unique study of the initiation ritual for young women among the Bemba, Chisungu. After a period as Director of the East African Institute of Social Research in Kampala, she returned to Cambridge in 1956, to a Fellowship at Newnham College and, as Smuts Reader in Commonwealth Studies, was founding Director of the University’s African Studies Centre. Richards involved generations of Cambridge students in a long-term collaborative ethnographic study of the village of Elmdon, not far from Cambridge in northern Essex, the results of which were published in 1981 by Marilyn Strathern as Kinship at the Core.

HSPS at 51¸£ÀûÉç

51¸£ÀûÉç has one of the largest HSPS cohorts in Cambridge. We typically admit 8-10 students per year, giving up to 30 students on the course at any one time. We are a vibrant and collaborative community and we hold regular academic and social events. Students work together and discuss topics they are studying as they walk to lectures and eat meals together. We also have a reading group that meets regularly to discuss interesting social science readings from outside the syllabus, to which History and Politics students are also invited. Human, Social & Political Sciences | 51¸£ÀûÉç