Grant Information

Student Research Grant

The Saida Waheed Gender Initiative offers competitive small grants to support student-led research and senior projects that place gender and/or sexuality at the center of their analytical approach. The grant is open to undergraduate students across all schools and departments at LUMS, encouraging interdisciplinary inquiry and original scholarship.

Students are welcome to define their own research themes. The following suggested areas illustrate the breadth of inquiry supported by this grant:

  • Technology and gender

  • Gender in media and literature

  • Culture, power, and inequality

  • Gender and science

  • Violence and trauma

  • Social, institutional, and legal discourses on gender and sexuality

  • Cross-cultural, transnational, and historical perspectives on sex and gender

  • Identity, embodiment, and the body

  • Gender and social media

  • Movements and activism

  • Masculinities

  • Gender, class, and work

  • Gender, sexuality, and health

The maximum award amount for this grant is PKR 20,000.

Grantees present their work-in-progress as part of SWGI’s programming calendar and submit a written piece of 500–700 words based on their research. All student work is published on the SWGI website, and the two strongest submissions are selected for inclusion in the Gender Bi-Annual.


Faculty Research Grant

The Saida Waheed Gender Initiative supports faculty research that advances innovative, critical, and interdisciplinary perspectives on gender and sexuality in Pakistan. This grant is open to faculty members at all ranks and welcomes diverse methodological and disciplinary approaches.

The Initiative provides funding for research-related expenses, which may include:

  • Travel for fieldwork, such as pilot interviews or preliminary case study development

  • Compensation for student research assistants

  • Other justified research costs relevant to the project

The standard maximum funding amount is PKR 200,000. Proposals requesting a higher amount may be considered when accompanied by clear, well-defined justifications.

Applicants submit a one-page proposal outlining:

  1. A concise description of the research project

  2. A breakdown detailing how and when the grant funds will be used

Grantees present their work or work-in-progress as part of SWGI’s event calendar, acknowledge SWGI’s support in all resulting publications, and share final publications or links (if not open access) for dissemination on the SWGI website.

For queries, applicants may email gender@lums.edu.pk.