The UCLA Center for India and South Asia is inviting submissions for the 2026 Sardar Patel Award, which honors the best doctoral dissertation on modern India with a $10,000 prize.
LOS ANGELES, CA – The UCLA Center for India and South Asia has officially announced the opening of entries for the 2026 Sardar Patel Award. This annual accolade seeks to recognize the best doctoral dissertation focused on modern India, completed at a U.S. university.
The award offers a substantial prize of $10,000 and is open to dissertations that explore various aspects of India from 1800 to the present. Submissions can come from a range of disciplines, including history, social sciences, humanities, education, and the fine arts. To be eligible, dissertations must have been completed between September 1, 2024, and August 31, 2025, at an accredited U.S. institution. Dissertations completed close to these dates may also be considered.
Applicants are required to submit a PDF of their dissertation along with a 500 to 1,000-word abstract, a curriculum vitae, and a letter from a dissertation supervisor or department chair confirming the completion of the dissertation within the specified timeframe.
The deadline for submissions is April 20, 2026. Interested candidates can submit their entries online at https://www.international.ucla.edu/cisa/patel. For any inquiries regarding competition guidelines, applicants can reach out via email at afmorcom@schoolofmusic.ucla.edu.
Established in 1999, the Sardar Patel Award is conferred annually by the UCLA Center for India and South Asia, supported by an endowment from the Friends of the Sardar Patel Association.
As part of the application process, candidates agree to have their dissertation abstracts published on the websites of both the Center and the Sardar Patel Association. The selected recipient is expected to attend the award ceremony in Los Angeles and acknowledge the Sardar Patel Association in any future publications related to their dissertation.
The award is named in honor of Vallabhbhai Patel, a prominent leader in India’s independence movement and the country’s first Deputy Prime Minister. Patel is well-known for his pivotal role in the integration of princely states into the Indian Union.
According to India-West, this award not only recognizes academic excellence but also aims to promote scholarly work that contributes to the understanding of modern India.