The Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) has won the Times Higher Education (THE) Awards Asia 2026 in the category of Outstanding Support for Students, recognising the University’s long-standing commitment to expanding access to higher education for talented students across Pakistan. The award acknowledges LUMS’ mission to address structural inequalities in access to opportunity and education that continue to shape lives across Pakistani society.
This work is anchored in two interconnected initiatives: the National Outreach Programme and the Student Success Initiative. Together, these initiatives reflect a sustained institutional commitment to not only expanding access, but also enabling students to thrive academically, socially, and professionally during their time at the University.
The National Outreach Programme serves as LUMS’ flagship access initiative. Through the programme, outreach teams at LUMS engage students, teachers, and families in geographically remote and economically under-resourced communities across Pakistan, encouraging high-potential students to pursue higher education opportunities that may otherwise seem beyond reach. In 2024 alone, the teams visited 276 schools across 90 cities and towns nationwide. Students selected through this process participate in a summer preparatory programme on campus, designed to prepare them for university life.
Once admitted to LUMS, which requires them to succeed on merit, students receive full financial awards for their studies and living expenses as well as support through the Student Success Initiative, which provides structured academic, mentoring, wellness, and career support throughout their time at the University. This includes peer and faculty mentoring, academic advising, tutoring, counselling, wellbeing support, career readiness programmes, alumni mentorship, and community-building initiatives designed to help students thrive both inside and outside the classroom.
The long-term impact of these efforts is reflected in the journeys of NOP scholars and alumni, many of whom have gone on to pursue leadership roles and careers across technology, finance, entrepreneurship, education, academia, development, and public service. Their achievements reflect LUMS’ broader mission of creating pathways for talented students to transform not only their own lives, but also the communities they go on to serve.