Scholarship / Abilities of mine allow interaction with people and have earned me a diverse and versatile network [3]

networking skills for chevening

Q- Chevening is looking for individuals with strong networking skills, who will engage with the Chevening community and influence and lead others in their chosen profession. Explain how you meet this requirement, using clear examples of your networking skills, and outline how you hope to use these skills in the future.

I have an unbiased and flexible attitude, good negotiating skills, reason based and empathetic approach towards people, I bear an understanding and acceptance for people and their circumstances. These abilities of mine allow interaction with people and have earned me a diverse and versatile network of people. People belonging from different communities, backgrounds and classes are a part of my widespread network. My activism has allowed me to work with minority communities, civil society, and students from various universities, news reporters, law-makers, parliament stakeholders and various pressure groups. As a core member of the National Students Federation's (NSF) Organizing Committee, I have organised various seminars where I have utilised my network for inviting people over as well as have broaden my network.

For a seminar on 'Current State of Education in Pakistan-One Day Folk School', I invited the panellists which included, Dr. Riaz Sheikh (Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences, SZABIST University), Dr. Jaffer Ahmed (Chairperson, Pakistan Study Centre, University of Karachi) and Dr. Bernadette Dean (Director, VM Institue for Education and former Principal, St. Joseph College for Women & Kinnaird College).

Similarly, while organising the 'Symbolic Human Shield and Celebration of Holi with Hindu Community', I utilised my network while talking to the authorities of Swaminarayan Mandir in Karachi. Another similar event organised by NSF to express solidarity with Christian community was organised by me. Apart from this, I invited the guests and news reporters for the coverage of the event. Consequently,at a seminar on 'Education Budget 2016', where Dr. Riaz Sheikh (Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences), Dr. Shahram Azhar (Asst. Professor, Habib University) and Dr. Fahd Hussain, (Asst. Professor, Habib University) appeared as guest speakers, were invited by me. In another seminar, on 'Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill (PECA 2016)' arranged by NSF at the Deptt of Sociology, University of Karachi, Frieha Aziz (Co-Founder & Director at BoloBhi, APNS Award Winning Journalist) was also invited as the guest speaker by me.

Correspondingly, during a campaign launched by me and my team against sexual harassment at educational institutions, I have come in close interaction with NGOs including Aurat Foundation and Womens Action Forum, feminist initiatives such as The Feminist Collective and Girls at Dhabas. Sadia Khatri, journalist and founder of Girls at Dhabas, Sheema Kirmani, Dancer and Founder of Tehrik-e- Niswan and Women Action Forum, Dr. Naveen. G Haider (Asst. Professor, Pakistan Study Centre, University of Karachi) and Dr. Azra Talat Saeed (Director, Roots for Equity)are in my close network.

Apart from these, Leading Journalists, Abbas Naqvi (Former Editor, DAWN Newspaper and Executive Editor, Asia Pacific, BBC World Service), Raza Rumi (Writer & Journalist, Visiting Faculty at Ithaca College and Author of books 'Delhi by Heart' and 'The Fractititous Path'), Salman

Rashid (Herald, DAWN Newspaper), Afak Afghun (Managing Editor and Writer at Sister-Hood Magazine), Kashif Siddiqui (Editor In-chief, Oxford University Press) and Jawaid Islam (Editor, Oxford University Press) are also a part of my circle.

Scholarship / I consider guiding and leading people towards positivism and working for their rights [6]

Q- Chevening is looking for individuals that will be future leaders or influencers in their home countries. Explain how you meet this requirement, using clear examples of your own leadership and influencing skills to support your answer.

Leadership question from chevening

I consider guiding and leading people towards positivism and working for their rights an integral part of my existence. Not only that, as a human being, I consider it as one of my fundamental duties towards fellow human beings. I belong from a country where leaders or influencers in the right meaning of these words are a rare find. For me, a leader or an influencer is a person who engages with people, brings out the best in them through his/her able leadership qualities and channelize people's energy towards constructive activities. In this manner, the vision of leadership and influencer comes naturally to me. Thereby, I want to adopt the role of a leader and influencer, someone who is and would be able to not only lead people but influence them to break their shackles, identify the power within them and channelize that power towards contributing something to the country, society or community.

Beginning from school, I have always been a proactive student participating in all kind of activities ranging from theatre, inter-school debate competitions, writing and spelling competitions, sports and athletics. Along with the co-curricular engagements, I have always managed to keep my grades up to the mark. The ability of managing everything perfectly earned me the accreditation of teachers and school administration who would entrust me with organisation of events such as school annual function, theatre and plays, picnics etc. Not to mention, I have served as the school prefect and deputy head prefect too. From my school days, I have been sensitive towards the social issues prevalent in society which lead me towards writing about them in the form of articles, stories and poems.

The knack for exploration and urge to utilise my abilities to maximum followed me through my college years where I would guide students in their studies, would engage with the students of various communities, discuss their issues and mobilise students on campus for various causes. I would convey the grievances of students to college administration and would assist them in finding a feasible and mutual solution. After college, I served 1.5 years as a school teacher where within six months of my service I was designated as the subject in-charge for English and Social Studies, overlooking and guiding a group of five to six teachers each subject.

As I entered the university, my exposure and interacting skills served as a source of my engagement with departmental literary and dramatics communities. Years spent at the university were my transformative years, where I excelled the studies and also became a student rights activist. My interaction was/is not limited to my department only but to various other departments and faculties as well. I identified student issues both within the department and on campus, interacted with students regarding their solution and mobilised them for the solution of their problems. This involved taking up student issues to department administration as well as to the university administration. On campus, I formed a team of my own, which works for the rights of students, aid them in their studies, mobilise them for their issues. For instance, Sexual Harassment is an issue plaguing the campus since decades, this issue was taken up by my team supervised by me. I organised seminars, interacted with students, teachers and administration, mobilised them for the resolution of this menace and is still working on the issue.