Zaheer.

Zaheer Ahmad

Political Science Researcher | SCR Research Grant Recipient | Policy & Agrarian Economy Specialist

Overview

Political Science graduate from LUMS with a specialized focus on qualitative research, gender studies, and agrarian economies. Recipient of the SCR Research Grant with a proven track record of leading complex fieldwork in partnership with international NGOs like OXFAM. Experienced mentor and educator who has supported over 300 students in research and academic development.

Pakistan

Experience

2021 – Present

WORK

Outreach Ambassador, Summer Coaching Fellow & Peer Mentor

NOP Center | LUMS

South Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Gilgit-Baltistan

Represented the NOP Centre across underserved districts of South Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Gilgit- Baltistan, engaging 500- 600 students through outreach, counselling, and admissions guidance - several secured fully funded admissions to LUMS. Coached students for the LCAT/SAT under the LUMS Summer Coaching Session and mentored newly admitted scholars through their transition to university life.

•Represented the NOP Centre across underserved districts of South Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Gilgit- Baltistan, engaging 500- 600 students through outreach, counselling, and admissions guidance

•Coached students for the LCAT/SAT under the LUMS Summer Coaching Session

•Mentored newly admitted scholars through their transition to university life.

Key Achievements

→Engaged 500-600 students through outreach and counseling.

→Several students secured fully funded admissions to LUMS.

LCATSAT

Sep 2024 – May 2026

WORK

Teaching Assistant at School of Humanities & Social Sciences | LUMS

School of Humanities & Social Sciences | LUMS

Lahore, Pakistan

Supported the instructors in delivering Qualitative Research Methods, Comparative Politics, Civil Society & Social Movements, British Raj & Frontier Governmentality, and Balochi Language courses. Mentored 300+ students on research papers, presentations, assignments, and senior year projects; acted as liaison between faculty and students on deadlines and course design. Assisted with record-keeping, grading, and course material development across hybrid teaching environments.

•Supported the instructors in delivering Qualitative Research Methods, Comparative Politics, Civil Society & Social Movements, British Raj & Frontier Governmentality, and Balochi Language courses.

•Mentored 300+ students on research papers, presentations, assignments, and senior year projects; acted as liaison between faculty and students on deadlines and course design.

•Assisted with record-keeping, grading, and course material development across hybrid teaching environments.

Key Achievements

→Authored the final report "Women Empowerment in Punjab | A Case study of Women in Rice Value Chain" detailing CSR intervention assessments.

→Identified a critical implementation gap where CSR models were incompatible with local ground realities.

→Recommended Public-Private Partnership (PPP) models to bridge NGOs with local authorities and community activists for sustainable impact.

Hybrid teaching environmentsQualitative Research Methods

2024 – 2025

WORK

Trainer & Advisor

Teaching Assistants' Advisory Group (TAAG) | LUMS Learning Institute

Lahore, Pakistan

Pioneered the TAAG initiative and proposed the TAAG Helpdesk, improving coordination across all LUMS schools and departments. Designed and delivered training modules on MS Excel, Mail Merge, LMS platforms, and graded instruments for 100+ Teaching Assistants. Successfully advocated for the TAPDC as a mandatory pre-requisite for TA-ships, implemented university-wide.

•Pioneered the TAAG initiative and proposed the TAAG Helpdesk, improving coordination across all LUMS schools and departments.

•Designed and delivered training modules on MS Excel, Mail Merge, LMS platforms, and graded instruments for 100+ Teaching Assistants.

•Successfully advocated for the TAPDC as a mandatory pre-requisite for TA-ships, implemented university-wide.

Key Achievements

→Improved coordination across all LUMS schools and departments through the TAAG Helpdesk proposal.

→Successfully advocated for the TAPDC as a mandatory pre-requisite for TA-ships, implemented university-wide.

MS ExcelMail MergeLMS platforms

Jun 2023 – May 2024

WORK

Research Assistant

School of Humanities & Social Sciences | LUMS

Lahore, Pakistan

Led weekly fieldwork cycles - in-depth interviews and Focus Group Discussions with farming communities across rural Punjab, generating primary qualitative data on gender and agrarian economies. Partnered with OXFAM and AAGAHI to document NGO-led CSR interventions, assessing impact on smallholder and female farmers. Translated and transcribed field notes and interview transcripts (Urdu/Punjabi/Saraiki → English), maintaining accuracy and dataset reliability. Identified implementation-stage gaps in CSR initiatives and recommended public-private partnership models for sustained impact.

•Led weekly fieldwork cycles - in-depth interviews and Focus Group Discussions with farming communities across rural Punjab, generating primary qualitative data on gender and agrarian economies.

•Partnered with OXFAM and AAGAHI to document NGO-led CSR interventions, assessing impact on smallholder and female farmers.

•Translated and transcribed field notes and interview transcripts (Urdu/Punjabi/Saraiki → English), maintaining accuracy and dataset reliability.

•Identified implementation-stage gaps in CSR initiatives and recommended public-private partnership models for sustained impact.

Key Achievements

→Authored the final report "Women Empowerment in Punjab | A Case study of Women in Rice Value Chain" detailing CSR intervention assessments.

→Identified a critical implementation gap where CSR models were incompatible with local ground realities.

→Recommended Public-Private Partnership (PPP) models to bridge NGOs with local authorities and community activists for sustainable impact.

→Conducted 30-35 in-depth interviews and 7-13 Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) across rural Punjab to generate primary qualitative data.

Qualitative dataIn-depth interviewsFocus Group DiscussionsTranscriptionTranslation

May 2022 – May 2022

Volunteer

Centre for Business and Society | SDSB | LUMS

Lahore, Pakistan

Managed logistics for the "3rd International Interdisciplinary Conference on Gender, Work, and Society, Future of Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) along with the CBS team. Assisted the judges in accomplishing their tasks, and distribution of certificates. Assisted in the operational and logistical aspects of launch of the sanitary products vending machine under the panel discussion "Workplace Diversity and Inclusion"

•Managed logistics for the "3rd International Interdisciplinary Conference on Gender, Work, and Society, Future of Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) along with the CBS team

•Assisted the judges in accomplishing their tasks, and distribution of certificates

•Assisted in the operational and logistical aspects of launch of the sanitary products vending machine under the panel discussion "Workplace Diversity and Inclusion"

Project Portfolio

PERSONAL

Sep 2023 – May 2024

Role of Class, Caste and Gender in Political Economy of Punjab | Women in Rice Value Chain

Lead Researcher

Conducted in-depth primary research to assess CSR-driven interventions in rice farming in Punjab, examining women's economic agency and empowerment. Evaluated NGO-led programs and documented barriers to inclusive participation.

Qualitative ResearchGender AnalysisDiversity AnalysisStakeholder Engagement

Education

2020 – 2024

BSc (Honours)

Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS)Specialization in Political Science

Thesis: Role of Class, Caste and Gender in Political Economy of Punjab | Women in Rice Value Chain

Societies & Activities

Dean's Honour ListSCR Research Grant Recipient

Impact & Recognition

Awards

Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) · 2023

Dean's Honour List

Spring 2022-23

LUMS Learning Institute & Office of Research · 2023

SCR Research Grant Recipient

2023-24

Professional Certifications

Queen Mary University of London | Higher Education Commission x Coursera · 2026

Research Methodologies

Higher Education Commission x Coursera · 2026

AI for Everyone for Work and Productivity

LUMS Learning Institute × LUMSx · 2024

Teaching Assistant Professional Development Course (TAPDC)

Information Systems & Technology | LUMS · 2021

Microsoft Office Skillfest - MS Word, PowerPoint & Excel

Social Impact & Activities

May 2022

Future of Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI)CONFERENCE TALK

3rd International Interdisciplinary Conference on Gender, Work, and Society

Managed logistics and assisted judges and operational aspects of launch of sanitary products vending machine.

Skills & Interests

Qualitative Research Design

TECHNICAL

Focus Group Discussions

TECHNICAL

MS PowerPoint

TOOL

MS Word

TOOL

Transcription & Translation

TECHNICAL

Fieldwork & Data Collection

TECHNICAL

In-depth Interviews

TECHNICAL

Report & Policy Writing

TECHNICAL

Literature Review

TECHNICAL

MS Excel

TOOL

LMS Platforms

TOOL

Process Documentation

TECHNICAL

MS Forms

TOOL

Canva

TOOL

Prompt Engineering

TECHNICAL

InPage

TOOL

Areas of Expertise

Stakeholder Engagement

Meeting Coordination

Logistics Management

Training Design & Facilitation

Communication

Working across multiple languages, enabling global collaboration and clear technical outreach.

Punjabi

English

Saraiki

Balochi

Urdu

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