Maheen Zakaria initially began her studies at Yale University hoping to find a solution to Pakistan’s energy crisis. But after graduating, Maheen realized that she wasn’t where she felt most needed. She made the difficult decision to return to Pakistan and pivot to medicine, where she believed she could have a direct impact on people’s lives.
Maheen knew that to create lasting change, the community and especially the youth, had to come together. She enrolled at Aga Khan University (AKU) and embarked on bringing her vision to life. Through Humanity Initiative, she rallied fellow students from other universities in Karachi to raise funds and support for the most vulnerable. Serving as General Secretary, President, and then Advisory Board Member, Maheen was instrumental in mobilizing student efforts, particularly during Pakistan's 2022 floods.
She co-founded student-led clinics in Karachi’s slums engaging medical students throughout Karachi. Together they brought accessible, quality care to underserved localities and helped encourage health seeking behaviours in the community. Reflecting on the experience, Maheen says, “Humanity Initiative is the most important and meaningful thing that has happened to me, and it will affect how I practice as a doctor for the rest of my life.”
Driven by her passion for health care, Maheen also initiated 'Canvas of Care,' a project that combines medicine with art to humanize the often-cold world of surgery. The project seeks to bridge the divide between the hands that heal and the hearts that suffer, showing patients the human side of clinical practice.
Her dedication to improving healthcare extends to her research in genetics and oncology, with the goal of improving cancer outcomes in Pakistan. As a former member of the Pakistan Youth Parliament and the American Society of Medical Genetics, she is committed to using her career to advocate for policies that would improve the lives of the public at large.
To share her insights, Maheen stood before large audiences, leading important conversations on controversial topics, from abortion to gender bias in research. She was the sole student speaker at
TEDxAga Khan University in 2024. In her talk,
'Dare to Ask' she spoke about channeling frustration and curiosity into real-world change.
Maheen graduated from AKU with an MBBS in 2025. Over her five years there, her life and career goals evolved, but her core mission remains the same: to create equity in healthcare, continuously improve medical education, and blend the best of science and humanity in her practice.
