Hi! I'm Shadi Heidarifar (SHUH-dee HEY-da-ree-fahr.) My name "Shadi" means Happiness in Persian. I was born and raised in Tehran, Iran. As a first-generation college student, I graduated with a B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Tehran. 

For my post-graduate studies, I initially planned to move to the United States. However, despite receiving multiple admission letters, I was ultimately unable to do so because of the Muslim Ban. My journey on going through that process is covered by the NYTimes and MotherJones. I eventually decided to pursue a master’s degree in Canada. This part of my journey is also covered by CBC. Throughout this process, I remained hopeful and tried to find a path to be of help to other students who were affected by the Muslim Ban. My case was eventually used in the Supreme Court and Congress to overturn a version of the Muslim Ban that led to the exemption of student visas in its next versions. Even though I was not able to achieve my dreams at the time, I was grateful that my case helped thousands of other students to achieve their goals. Moving to Canada, I graduated with an M.A. in Philosophy from the University of Western Ontario.

In 2019, I was finally able to move to the United States to start my P.h.D. in Philosophy at the University of Florida and I graduated in Aug 2024. Despite my love for traveling, it has become significantly difficult these past couple of years because of the pandemic. I love traveling across the United States as well as around the World. 

Besides traveling, in my free time, I enjoy watching classic films, stand-up comedies, and both European and American football. I am a huge fan of FC Barcelona as well as the Chiefs and planning to attend one of their games on my birthday this year!

Thanks for taking some time to learn a little bit more about me! Want to read more about my academic work? Click on the “Research,” “Teaching,” or “CV” tabs above. If you would like to contact me, click on the “Contact” tab.