Lahore University of Management Sciences

The Lahore University of Management Sciences, usually referred to by its acronym LUMS, is a university located in Lahore, Pakistan. LUMS was established in 1984 by a group of industrialists and people belonging to Pakistan’s leading private and public sector corporations, to provide rigorous academic and intellectual training to students. According to the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, LUMS is the top ranked Pakistani university among institutions that offer degrees in Business Management and Information Technology in South Asia.

Motto	none
Established	1984
Type	Private
Vice-Chancellor	Dr. Adil Najam
Academic staff	143[1]
Undergraduates	2400
Postgraduates	1600
Doctoral students	15+
Location	Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan

History

The university was granted a charter by the Government of Pakistan in March 1985. The LUMS Board of Trustees comprises leading members of the domestic business community, academics, and government representatives. The principal functions of the board are to set policy guidelines and to review the operations of the university. The Board of Governors, as the sponsor of LUMS, raises funds necessary for the university’s operation and maintenance. Many board members are representatives of the business community and form a crucial link between the university and the Pakistani business worlds.

In 1986, a business school by the name of Lahore Business School was established for MBA Programme. Later the school was renamed and is known as Suleman Dawood Business School, SDSB. After the construction of current campus, LUMS started undergraduate programmes in Economics and Computer Sciences in 1994. In 1996, School of Arts and Science was introduced to oversee the undergraduate programmes. Master Programmes in Economics, Computer Sciences and Computer Engineering were introduced later on, followed by doctoral programmes in the disciplines of Computer Sciences, Computer Engineering and Mathematics. A five-year BA-LL.B degree was also added in 2005 in the list of programmes offered by school. Keeping in view the diversity of programmes offered by school, LUMS established School of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law, SHSSL, to oversee Social Sciences, Economics and Law departments. Other disciplines of Mathematics, Computer Science and Computer Engineering were to be the part of School of Sciences and Engineering, which was established in 2008.

Organization

Suleman Dawood School of Business (SDSB)

The Business School was the first school established at the Lahore University of Management Sciences in 1986, following a growing recognition that Pakistan needed good managers to meet the challenges of the future. The principal goals of the school include an original and innovative curriculum, a high-quality student intake, and a motivated and qualified faculty. SDSB offers full-time MBA Programme, Executive MBA, BSc Hons and PhD in Management. It is the only management school in Pakistan which follows case study method.

A new separate building for the school is being constructed which is expected to be operational sometime in 2011.

Rausing Executive Development Centre (REDC)

Rausing Executive Development Centre (REDC) working under the aegis of Suleman Dawood School of Business (SDSB) upholding the same kind of standards and rigor for which SDSB is known for in the business community. REDC being a centre of excellence provides executive education services to the corporate community of region. As a strategic arm of SDSB, it has transformed itself into a leading service provider offering premium short duration programmes in all areas of management to the executives. Almost all of REDC’s core intellectual resources are leveraged from the SDSB including faculty, teaching material, case method of teaching and processes of ensuring quality.

School of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law (SHSSL)

The School of Humanities and Sciences and Law consists of the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, the Department of Economics and the Department of Law.

Department of Humanities and Social Science (DHSS)

The Department of Humanities and Social Science (DHSS) aspires to the advancement of knowledge that is socially and ethically relevant through innovation and excellence in its academic programme. DHSS offers three undergraduate programmes leading to the BSc (Honours) degree in Anthropology/Sociology, Humanities and Political Science, as well as a combined programme in Politics and Economics in conjunction with the Economics Department. Started in 1999, the Department of Humanities and Social Science is home to a number of distinct disciplines in the Social Science and Humanities including Anthropology and Sociology, Literature, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology and History.

Department of Economics

The Economics Department offers a 4-year undergraduate programme in Economics (first class graduated in 1997) as well as a master’s programme in Economics (first class graduated in 2002). Economics is one of the most popular majors at the University and almost fifty per cent of the student body is enrolled in Economics either as a major, a joint degree programme or as a minor. However it has been suffering with recruiting owing to the financial troubles of the university.

Department of Law and Policy

The Law and Policy department combines the richness of our liberal arts educations with a solid professional programme in law. Its pedagogical approach to law and Policy is analytical, critical and comparative, and high premium is placed on faculty research and policy output. In the space of three years the law faculty has attracted graduates from Harvard, Oxford, Michigan, British Columbia and the London School of Economics. The full time faculty includes Roger Normand, a former executive director of the Centre for Economic and Social Rights, New York. The department is in the process of developing academic and exchange linkages with several universities in the region. With the induction of more faculty and the launch of an LL.M, the Law and Policy department will evolve into a School of Law & Policy in few years it is hoped.

School of Science and Engineering (SSE)

The LUMS School of Science and Engineering (SSE) is a new school within LUMS with undergraduate programs in Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Physics; and graduate programs in Computer Science and Mathematics. Additional engineering programs will be added in the future. The University is currently searching for a new leader for this school.

School of Law and Policy

The School of Law and Policy will be established with the expansion of the Department of Law and Policy currently under the School of Humanities and Sciences at a later stage.

School of Education and Applied Psychology

This school is currently in the early planning stages and would offer a 5 year B.A-M.Ed or B.Sc-M.Ed degrees in collaboration with other schools of this university. In due course, MA and PhD programmes in applied, managerial and child psychology, education, and human development will be offered.

Faculty

Whilst not all faculty members hold doctoral degrees, academic staff includes PhD holders from some of the top tier universities such as Stanford, Rice University, MIT, University of California, Berkeley, University of Manchester, McGill University, McMaster University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Toronto, University of Texas at Austin, University College London, Imperial College London, National University of Singapore, Cambridge University, Oxford University, Yale University, and Harvard University. Notable Faculty members include:

School of Science and Engineering

• Asad Abidi: Professor of Electrical Engineering who has also served as the Dean of school of Science and Engineering (no longer at LUMS).
• Arif Zaman: A well-respected Statistician and Mathematician.
• Ashraf Iqbal: Professor of Computer Science
• Khalid Aziz: Professor of Electrical Engineering specializing in energy resources engineering
• Shahid Khan: Professor of Biology specializing in Molecular Biophysics

School of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law

• Ali Cheema: associate professor of Economics and Head of Department
• Zafar Iqbal Qureshi: Provost
• Syed Nomanul Haq, Professor of the humanities at LUMS and The University of Pennsylvania.
• Rasul Baksh Rais, Professor Political Science.
• Ayesha Jalal, Professor of History.
• Shahryar Khan, Professor of International Relations
• S. Azmat Hassan, Professor of International Relations

Research at LUMS

Whilst the university continues to be a first class teaching institution, producing exceptional graduates, it still struggles to obtain an internationally renowned status as a research based institution. Whilst conference proceedings and working papers are plentiful, peer reviewed research in journals of even moderate repute remains a premium. In an attempt to encourage research by faculty, the university is considering a novel idea of offering rewards – the precise nature is yet to be finalized.

LUMS Library

The Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) Library is the first automated library of Pakistan that provides full range of services that include loans, online information searching, reference services, inter-library loan, document delivery, photocopying, viewing of audiovisual and microfilm materials, access to virtual collections & digital resources, CD-ROM & online searching etc. It has a collection of over 350,000 volumes, 128,000 e-books and 35,000 e-Journals and the library staff continuously seeks to upgrade it with new and latest volumes available. The Library also has a multidisciplinary wing, Khalid Ishaq Wing, dedicated to jurist and scholar Khalid M. Ishaq, who donated 92,957 books from his collection to the library.

International recognition

LUMS is an internationally recognized institute with its graduates recruited by companies (usually after first undertaking graduate study abroad) such as Cisco Systems, Sun Microsystems, BP, 3M, Google, Shell, Deloitte, Accenture, Countrywide Bank, JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, UBS, Citigroup, London Stock Exchange, IBM, Bank of America, Indymac Bank, AOL, Microsoft, Ernst & Young, Mashreq Bank and Habib Bank. The school’s reputation seems to have spread beyond just domestic applicants though, as a number of applications also come in from the Middle East, the Far East, Central Asia, and other parts of South Asia. Recently, LUMS acknowledged its place as one of the first university in Pakistan to conduct bilateral exchange programs for undergraduate students. In spring 2007, three LUMS students, including Sana Zia and Sana Majeed, visited Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan sponsored by Mitsubishi.

The university also trains and harbors one of the best Model UN teams in the world. This year marks LUMUN’s fifth consecutive victory at the most reputed MUN conference in the world organized by Harvard University. LUMUN team has won in Beijing (2006), Geneva (2007), Mexico (2008), The Hague (2009) and Taipei (2010), outshining world-class institutions such as Yale, Oxford and Stanford.

Student life

University campus contains an academic block, a library, an IT building, a Pepsi-sponsored dining center (PDC), Executive Development Center, a mosque and a Sports complex. The Sports complex houses world class squash courts,a basketball court, badminton and table tennis facilities, a gym, a fitness room, a music room, a chess room, an art room, an EMS office, a doctor’s clinic, a counsellor’s office, etc. Hostels are segregated, with exclusive male and female residential arrangements.

LUMS students also take part in extracurricular activities such as managing academic conferences, hosting charity shows and debating events. Student societies, clubs, and associations help to meet the recreational and vocational needs of students, who also bring with them a rich blend of extracurricular interests.

LUMS Emergency Medical Services (website at http://ems.lums.edu.pk), in collaboration with Rescue 1122 Pakistan, is a proper university department which is organized, managed, and run by LUMS student volunteers who are trained and certified in First Aid and CPR to serve as First Responders to any campus medical emergency. By having an around the clock student EMS service, LUMS has joined the ranks of many leading universities in the US and elsewhere who offer such a facility to their campus communities. It is the first initiative of its kind in a Pakistani university, LUMS aims to spread this new system to all institutes and organizations across Pakistan.

LUMS has a plethora of societies that are almost always active throughout the year. Some of the more prominent societies are:

• Society for Promotion and Development of Engineering and Sciences (SPADES)
• Dramatics Society (DRAMALINE)
• Debates and Recitation Society at LUMS (DRUMS)
• Sports at LUMS (SLUMS)
• Publications at LUMS (PLUMS)
• LUMS Entrepreneurial Society (LES)
• LUMS Adventure Society (LAS)
• ACM- LUMS Student Chapter
• Pakistan Students Association International – LUMS Chapter
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) – LUMS Student Chapter
• LUMS Alpha Society
• LUMS Art Club
• LUMS Astronomy Club
• LUMS Chess Club
• LUMS Community Service Society
• LUMS Computer Gaming Association
• LUMS Culture Society
• LUMS Daily Student (LDS, Journalism Society)
• LUMS Law and Politics Society (LPS)
• LUMS Media Arts Society
• LUMS Model United Nations (LUMUN)
• LUMS Music Society (LMS)
• LUMS Photographic Society
• LUMS Religious Society (LRS)
• LUMS Student Math Society (LSMS)
• LUMS Volunteer Society (LVS)
• Random Walk Economics Society (RWES)
• RADIOLUMS
• AIESEC

Besides these societies, various student run Executive Clubs in different management areas e.g. Marketing, Finance, Human Resource etc. are also introduced for last few years. The main purpose of these executive clubs is to engage the student with extracurricular activities. These executive clubs provide a platform for the students to take active part in the organizing various seminars, conferences etc. It helps students to interact with the people from different industry where they are exposed to current situation and trends in markets.

LUMS has emerged as the hub of the nascent but burgeoning Student Movement in Pakistan, advocating the cause of rule of law, independence of the judiciary and free media. Initiated by the Law and Politics Society, the movement aims at spearheading a new wave of political consciousness and activism amongst the students. The movement that began at LUMS is spreading beyond the campus and is inspiring students around the country.

Financial Aid

Financial assistance at LUMS is based on need and merit. Scholarships are typically awarded on merit or extremely high need. Usually a combination of financial aid comprising loan, tuition waiver and work compensation is offered to students. The university claims that it has given Rs. 1.2 billion in the form of scholarship or financial assistance to date. Some forms of financial assistance available to LUMS students are as follows:

Merit Scholarship

This is given to the top students on the admission merit list at the time of admission. Merit Scholarship for undergraduate programs covers full tuition fee for the top three (3) students and in the graduate program it covers partial to full tuition fee for the first academic year of the students.

LUMS Scholarships

Granted to students in all programs with excellent academic performance and genuine need for financial aid.

LUMS Loan

Granted to graduate programs with good academic performance and genuine need for financial aid. The LUMS Loan scheme covers 20%-100% of the tuition fee component of the student. In all, LUMS loans are interest free.

National Outreach Programme

LUMS has launched a National Outreach Programme to reach out to bright students from underprivileged areas of Pakistan. Under this initiative, induction of selected candidates into the various academic programs will be facilitated by preparation for the University’s rigorous admission criteria and then by provision of full financial assistance to those who qualify. Many students are admitted in LUMS on the basis of NOP. There are also a number of scholarships which are offered on need/academic achievement basis. A preliminary evaluation test is used to screen bright students from the underprivileged areas of Pakistan, which are then given training at LUMS for the common admission test.

Notable alumni

Notable alumni include Umar Saif, Shahid Mustafa, who launched Tameer Bank; Sadiq Yousaf Almaz, the brain behind Burraq Telecom; Faisal Farid, General Manager (West Asia) Pepsi Cola International (Pvt) Ltd; Naureen and Saadia Bukhari, who launched The Saturday Post, a magazine that showcases contemporary Pakistan. Hina Khar Member National Assembly and ex-Minister. Saulat Salahuddin, one of the first few women graduates, runs her business PRONTO that supplies corporate gifts. Companies like Lumen Software have LUMS graduates behind their success. The list is long and, therefore, it is not surprising to find LUMS alumni chapters in North America, UK, Dubai, Karachi, etc.