I am a fourth-year Ph.D. candidate at the University of Michigan School of Information, advised by Prof. Kentaro Toyama. My research focuses on Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICTD).

For my dissertation research, I am specifically exploring the implications of design choices that primarily cater to Western contexts while overlooking the cultural sensitivities and unique challenges faced by conservative, religious, and honor-driven communities in South Asia. My work incorporates feminist, cultural, and intersectionality theories, utilizing contextual inquiries and system design. I collaborate with local organizations in Pakistan that actively address the issue of non-consensual disclosure of women's sensitive information on social media platforms. Together, we aim to develop culturally-sensitive technologies and guidelines that empower women to dismantle the mechanisms of threat and power employed by abusers.

Before pursuing my Ph.D., I worked as a lecturer at the Information Technology University (ITU) in Pakistan, where I also completed my master's degree in Computer Science. During that time, I served as a research and technical lead on several grants funded by organizations such as G&M Foundation, Google, and DFID. These projects focused on various areas, including addressing social media privacy concerns of women in Pakistan, exploring pre and postpartum concerns of women and designing technologies for supportive supervision of health care officials in Punjab, Pakistan. Additionally, I worked with the Punjab government health department as an ICTD consultant, contributing to the design of a digital repository for the Punjab vaccination system and an information system for public hospitals.

CV

Pronouns

She/Her/Hers

Areas of interest

Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICTD), Social Media Privacy, Non-consensual Disclosures, Maternal and Child Health

Honors & Awards

Global Islamic Studies Center Graduate (GISC) Student Fellowship (2023)

Fulbright Scholarship (2019)

Best Paper Award (2018)
ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2018)
Fourteenth Symposium on Usable Privacy and Security (SOUPS, 2018)

STEM Role Model Nominee (2018)
Nominated as a role model for women in STEM in Pakistan

Australian Award Fellowship (2017)
Technology ecosystem workshop in Melbourne, Australia

United Nations Peach Technology Fellowship (2017)
UN University, Macau

IDDS Fellowship (2015)
Design thinking fellowship, Chennai, India

Gold Medal (2015)
Masters in Computer Science, ITU

Gold Medal and Roll of Honor (2011)
BS Electrical Engineering, GCU

Education

Ph.D. in Information (Sept. 2019 - Present)
School of Information, University of Michigan (UMSI), Ann Arbor, MI

Masters in Computer Science (Sept. 2012 - Aug. 2014)
Information Technology University (ITU), Punjab, Pakistan

Undergrad in Electrical Engineering (Sept. 2006 - Aug. 2010)
Government College University (GCU), Lahore, Pakistan