The Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka (IPS) celebrates the outstanding achievement of its latest batch of researchers in winning prestigious scholarships for postgraduate studies at top-rated universities.

Suresh Ranasinghe joined the IPS on graduating with a BA in Economics with First Class Honours from the University of Colombo and an LLB from the Open University of Sri Lanka and secured a Commonwealth Shared Scholarship in 2022/23 to follow an MSc in Development Economics from the University of Nottingham, UK. On his return, Suresh pursued his research interests in health, education, and labour policy and was awarded a fully funded studentship to commence a PhD in Economics at Nottingham Trent University, UK, from October 2025.

Usha Perera joined the IPS with a BA in Economics with First Class Honours from the University of Colombo and won a Commonwealth Shared Scholarship 2023/24 to pursue an MSc in Economics at the University of Leeds. On her return to the IPS, she continued to pursue her research interests in health, labour, and education policy and successfully secured funding from the Economic and Social Research Council, UK, to commence a PhD in Economics at Lancaster University, UK in October 2026.

Chandula Idirisinghe joined the IPS with a BSc (Hons) in Agricultural Technology and Management with an Upper Second Class from the University of Peradeniya and successfully completed a Master of Agricultural Economics from the Postgraduate Institute of Agriculture at the University of Peradeniya. With his research pursuits in the areas of agriculture and agribusiness development policy, Chandula has gained admission to the University of Guelph, Canada, on a fully funded scholarship to commence his PhD in Management in September 2026.

Himani Vithanage joined the IPS as a Saman Kelegama Research Grant awardee, with a BA in Economics with First Class Honours from the University of Colombo as well as a BSc in Economics and Finance with First Class Honours from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) to pursue research in the areas of health, education, and labour policy. Himani has been awarded a Commonwealth Master's Scholarship 2026 and secured admission to the University of Oxford to commence an MSc in Economics for Development in September 2026.

Chaya Dissanayake joined the IPS with a B.Sc. (Hons) in Agriculture with an Upper Second Class from the University of Jaffna. Chaya’s research at the IPS, particularly in relation to disaster risk preparedness, will see her commencing an MSc in Risk and Disaster Science at University College London (UCL), UK, in September 2026 as a Commonwealth Shared Scholarship 2026 winner.

Dinithi Athulathmudali joined the IPS as a Saman Kelegama Research Grant awardee, with a BA in Economics with First Class Honours from the University of Colombo. Dinithi’s research at the IPS has focused on health, education, and labour policy. She has been awarded the Commonwealth Master's Scholarship 2026 and secured admission to the University of Oxford to commence an MSc in Economics for Development in September 2026.

The IPS congratulates its scholarship winners on their outstanding achievements and looks forward to their further contribution in strengthening national capacity in economic policy analysis. The Institute will continue to support the growth and professional development of its young researchers.