Shahab Abbaszadeh was recently awarded the Academic Excellence Awards from the Research Counsellor Office of the Islamic Republic of Iran in South Pacific of Asia 2007-2008.

SERDANG, 20 April – Shahab Abbaszadeh, a doctoral student in the PhD program in the field of Architecture at Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), has been awarded the Academic Excellence Awards from the Research Counsellor Office of the Islamic Republic of Iran in South Pacific of Asia 2007-2008.

Vice Dean (Research, Graduate Studies and Internationalization) from the Faculty of Design and Architecture UPM, Associate Professor Dr. Rahinah Ibrahim said this student was chosen because of the importance of his research about Persian socio-cultural applications in the building of high-rise housing developments in Iran.

“The research method that Shahab utilized is known as the sequential mixed-method research.”

“The development of the theory that was used in Shahab’s architectural research is rarely used in the world because it poses an extremely high failure risk,” she said when contacted.

Dr. Rahinah said that this type of research is very time-consuming because the student needs to be proficient in research methods and must be able to grasp the literature and writing theories exceptionally.

According to the Counsellor and Director for Iranian Student affaires South Pacific Asia, Dr. Vahid Ali, this award has been given to Iranian students studying in South East Asia since 2008.

“The main reason of this award is to honour students and to encourage them to succeed in their studies by taking part this competition. This competition is open to all students from Iran, who are studying in the South East Asian regions of Singapore, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Japan, and China,” he said.

He added that Shahab was chosen because of his contribution to the city development project in Iran, as well as his excellent academic achievements.

When met recently, Shahab expressed that his success was the result of two years and six months worth of research.

“This research was especially challenging because I had to master qualitative and quantitative research methods in order to make this project a success,” he added.

He also expressed his heartfelt appreciation to his supervisors, Dr. Rahinah, Dr. Ar. Azizah, Dr. Ahmad Hariza and Mohd Nasir from UPM for their constant support and encouragement, which helped him to continue his research for his PhD viva presentation.


Prepared by Media & Publicity Section, Corporate Communication Division, UPM