LUMS Students Make History as First Ever Pakistani Team to Be Chairs at Oxford's Flagship MUN
Four LUMS students have made history as the first Pakistani team ever invited to chair at OxIMUN, one of Europe's largest Model UN conferences. Muhammad Hamza Athar (BSc ’26), Eman Ali (BS ’26), Muhammad Shazil Nadeem (BS ’27), and Mahnoor Gul (BA ’26) travelled to Oxford University from October 31 to November 2 to serve as judges alongside Oxford's own chairs, marking a breakthrough moment for Pakistani representation in the global MUN circuit.
The invitation came through a new collaboration between LUMUN and OxIMUN. Hamza, President of LUMUN, explains, "Last year, they came here to chair at LUMUN. We had a detailed discussion with them. Considering the quality of debate and where our teams stand, we felt a collaboration would be beneficial for both organisations."
This development isn’t surprising. Over the past several years, LUMUN has slowly but surely built a stellar reputation. It has three consecutive wins at Harvard National MUN and multiple WorldMUN titles. "We've been winning back-to-back at every conference we attend," says Mahnoor, Secretary General of LUMUN. "Schools that previously would not have known about LUMS are now seeing us as trailblazers in their circuit."
For the students, representing Pakistan at Oxford was a moment of great pride. "Holding the Pakistani flag, representing both LUMS and my country, felt like a dream come true," shares Shazil. "I wasn't just representing myself; I was representing the talent, resilience, and intellectual calibre of Pakistan's youth."
The LUMS team also brought their own innovations to Oxford. Eman attributes the society's success to its culture of mutual support. "LUMUN has this mindset where they always feel the need to be better than last year while helping each other along the way, uplifting every single person. When the community grows, the society grows as well." At Oxford, she incorporated this culture into her committee, "We give feedback at LUMUN, and that's something I brought to Oxford. That was something the delegates really appreciated."
For Hamza, the experience crystallised on the second day of debate, "Watching all these delegates perform at this level of excellence – there was this realisation: we are finally here where we want to be, at an organisation which is perhaps the best MUN in Europe, and possibly in the world."
The collaboration continues later this month when OxIMUN chairs travel to Pakistan to judge at LUMUN 2025. Hamza sees this as just the beginning, "Our goal as the best MUN society in South Asia is to become an active part of the global circuit, where we are typically underrepresented. It's not just chairs going to Oxford MUN – it's about partnering with them and bringing in international delegates." With the LUMUN team going from strength to strength, they have helped positioned Pakistan as a serious player in global youth diplomacy.
To register for this year's LUMUN conference, click here.
