GOAL scholar achieves doctorate, book award

– Ashwannie Harripersaud is the first and only teacher in the secondary classroom with doctorate

Assistant Senior Mistress at the Canje Secondary School in New Amsterdam, Berbice, Dr Ashwannie Harripersaud earned her Doctorate in Education from Selinus University, based in Rome, Italy, earlier this year. She is currently the first and only teacher at the secondary level in that institution to hold a doctoral degree. Dr Harripersaud also holds a Master of Arts in English, which she obtained last year from Jain University in India, through the Guyana Online Academy of Learning (GOAL) scholarship programme.
She has also published six books; one of which won the Blue Rose Book Award in 2024, and she has published nineteen full-length articles in international, scholarly refereed journals.
In 2023, Dr Ashwannie Harripersaud was granted the Global Award for Outstanding Scholarship. Last year, she was also named a recipient of the 25 Influential Women’s Award. Throughout her studies, Dr Harripersaud continued to serve as a full-time secondary school teacher of English and Mathematics.
“In addition to my professional obligations, I also have my domestic obligations which most adult women have,” she told this publication. She pointed out that it was all achieved through hard work and sacrifice, which included many sleepless nights. “The lack of sleep, the perpetual grind, was it worth it?” she asked herself, and also expectedly gave the answer.
“To me it is all worth it, and I hope my fellow Guyanese think it is worth it as well.”
Despite many sleepless nights, Dr Harripersaud said in the evening, during her studies, she found the time to unwind from the day’s activities.
“Each night, I spend time feeding and chatting with my six babies. One German Shepherd, one Husky, and four Shepskies. Even when they howl their displeasure at me for being late with supper, they do so with such love that I relax,” she explained.

However, as unusual as it may seem, Dr Harripersaud started her doctoral studies immediately after the Masters, and completed it within a year.
“Several people have asked me about that, a few with some suspicion. It is also unusual for universities today to be inflexible. There are several elements to consider here. First the traditional Ph.D. programme has five requirements for students admitted with a master’s degree, and no or scant publication record”.
Outlining the five stages, she pointed out that the first is the doctoral or post-graduate courses.
“These are meant to fill the gaps in one’s area of specialisation and can be as many as ten. If there are no gaps, one may be exempt from courses. One year is saved,” she explained.
The second stage is where a foreign language is required and if the student is already certified as having a foreign language, then that requirement has been met and more time saved.
“Another stage is the comprehensive examination. This is a 9-hour exam on any and all aspects of your area of study, starting from the inception of that discipline. If you are reading for a doctorate in English, for example, you may be asked questions on anything written before the English alphabet (like the runic script), right up to what was written in English that was published yesterday. It is formidable, which is why the Ph.D. candidate is given one year to read for this. However, if you have a formidable record of publication like I had, the university may exempt you from the comprehensive exam,” she added.
“The dissertation is the next step. This is mandatory, since your dissertation must be a new and significant addition to knowledge in the area under study. One is given one to two years to complete this.”
The fifth step towards obtaining a doctorate is the defence of the dissertation, which is mandatory.
This, she explained, can be between one to three hours. “This amounts to about four years. Having completed all five of these requirements, one has fulfilled the requirements towards the doctorate.”
She confesses that she was ignorant of the process. “It was my mentor–himself a world-renown scholar– who enlightened me about how the system works. He prepared me by insisting that I publish with an eye to quality and consistent quantity.” She says in her case, the exemptions were made because of her record of scholarly publications.
“My completion of the doctorate came from sheer hard, unrelenting work – and my mentor’s unflagging support and encouragement.”
This information in the process is most likely to inspire young aspiring academics in Guyana. Asked what she was doing with a Doctorate in Education at a secondary school and not lecturing at the university or serving in the Ministry of Education, Dr Harripersaud said she is unaware of the hiring practices at the University of Guyana (UG).
“It may be that our national university has higher standards that I can meet at this time, I don’t know. The Ministry? I do not know either, but I can assure you that I am ready to serve wherever I am asked to serve. Right now, there are no offers. I am somewhat disappointed, but I remain hopeful. In the meanwhile, I am employed at a secondary school, and I will continue to serve my school and my students with all that I have,” she added, while noting that she will continue to serve the country in whatever capacity she is allowed. Dr Harripersaud is currently authoring another book on Education: “Education, Educating, Educators: Working to Create an Educated Nation”. It is expected to be released in May of this year. “I would like to especially thank Vice Chancellor Paloma Mohamed, who has never failed to be supportive of my work,” she expressed gratefully.