Readers' Forum
Cornelia Sorabji program
Cornelia Sorabji (pictured), the first female law student at Oxford in 1889 continues to provide a pioneering link between India and the University of Oxford. Sorabji was not only Somerville College’s first Indian student, but also the first Indian woman to study at any British University.
On her return to her home country, Sorabji became the first woman to practice law in India and worked on behalf of women living in purdah. Her lifetime’s work as a social reformer centered round support for the poor and for women at every level of society.
From its inception in 1879, Somerville College, founded as one of the first two institutions at the University of Oxford to admit women, had been dedicated to inclusion, explicitly welcoming students from all social backgrounds, any kind of cultural and religious beliefs, and all nationalities. Sorabji actually came to Oxford with the help of a subscription raised by progressive British men and women including Madeleine Shaw Lefevre, the first principal of Somerville.
The Faculty of Law and Somerville College are thus proud to celebrate Sorabji and her achievements through the creation of scholarships for outstanding Indian graduate students in law. The Cornelia Sorabji Law Program is housed at the Oxford India Centre, (http://www.some.ox.ac.uk/research/oxford-india-centre/) and provides a thriving postgraduate and postdoctoral program for talented Indian graduate students who seek to lead change on their return to India.
November 15, 2016 will mark the 150th anniversary of Sorabji’s birth. On September 22, 2016, the principal of Somerville College, Dr Alice Prochaska, discussed the event at the Oxford and Cambridge Club and provided details about this unique scholarship scheme. For further information please contact Sara Kalim, Director of Development, Somerville College, at: sara.kalim@some.ox.ac.uk.
On her return to her home country, Sorabji became the first woman to practice law in India and worked on behalf of women living in purdah. Her lifetime’s work as a social reformer centered round support for the poor and for women at every level of society.From its inception in 1879, Somerville College, founded as one of the first two institutions at the University of Oxford to admit women, had been dedicated to inclusion, explicitly welcoming students from all social backgrounds, any kind of cultural and religious beliefs, and all nationalities. Sorabji actually came to Oxford with the help of a subscription raised by progressive British men and women including Madeleine Shaw Lefevre, the first principal of Somerville.
The Faculty of Law and Somerville College are thus proud to celebrate Sorabji and her achievements through the creation of scholarships for outstanding Indian graduate students in law. The Cornelia Sorabji Law Program is housed at the Oxford India Centre, (http://www.some.ox.ac.uk/research/oxford-india-centre/) and provides a thriving postgraduate and postdoctoral program for talented Indian graduate students who seek to lead change on their return to India.
November 15, 2016 will mark the 150th anniversary of Sorabji’s birth. On September 22, 2016, the principal of Somerville College, Dr Alice Prochaska, discussed the event at the Oxford and Cambridge Club and provided details about this unique scholarship scheme. For further information please contact Sara Kalim, Director of Development, Somerville College, at: sara.kalim@some.ox.ac.uk.
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From the archive