Dilpul Naeem2017-08-212017-08-212017https://escholar.umt.edu.pk/handle/123456789/2087Supervised by:Sayad Zahoor ShahThis thesis explores the sociolinguistic challenges faced by students studying in higher education institutionsspread over Lahore. The data was collected from Balochi speaking students registered into different degree programs at the institution of higher education in Lahore. Qualitative research design was adopted for this study. The in-depth interviewing instrument was used to collect data for the study to record the experiences of the students. Data was analyzed through thematic content. Hence, the study focused on the emerging themes in the data set. The results reveal that linguistic challenges range from pronunciation, syntax and semantic aspect of language which continuously hinder their communication in the target language (Urdu). Consequently, as the results suggest, issues of social inclusion arise when the target language proficiency is weak.The study concludes that there is a connection between social inclusion and linguistic competence as the multilingual sites in Lahore. The study suggests the dominant language competence mediates between the social inclusion and multilingual or multicultural sites at the institution of higher education in Lahore.ensociolinguistic challengesMPhil ThesisThesis