Dr. Tahira S. Khan holds a Ph.D. degree in International Studies from University of Denver (US); M. A. degree in Political Science from Villanova University (US) and another M.A. degree in History from Islamabad (Pakistan). Her regional specialization is in the area of South Asian politics and religion.

The main focus of her teaching and research has been on the issues of women/gender and politics in Islam. She has taught in various universities in the US and Pakistan over the period of past thirty years, mentioning a few here: Karachi University and Aga Khan University (Pakistan); University of Denver, Metropolitan State University Denver, University Colorado Boulder and Columbia University New York. Besides her teaching career, she has actively worked as a researcher and workshop facilitator with women/human rights organizations at national and international level; Asia Pacific Forum on Women Law and Development (APWLD) in Chiangmai, Thailand; Women’s World March Canada; Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Shirkat Gah: Women’s Resources Center Pakistan. She has published a national award-winning book on the topic of violence against women entitled Beyond Honour: A Historical Materialist Explanation of Honour Related Violence. (Oxford University of Press: 2006).

Further, to her credit are numerous articles and reports published in various national and international journals. She has been on the editorial boards of various scholarly journals and publishing houses. Her on-going research project is on the topic of women’s religious and secular activism in Pakistan since 1980s.