4th January 2022 is when the new year for the University of Kigali kicks in and when first-year students will walk through our doors to register for the new trimester. As Deputy Vice Chancellor-Academic I author this article to celebrate the utterly amazing students and alumni I have encountered in my first trimester at the University as Deputy Vice Chancellor-Academic at the University of Kigali. A few months ago, I sat in a lounge at the Kotoka International Airport waiting to board a Rwandair flight to Kigali when a tall handsome gentleman walked in and said hi. Another gentleman accompanied him, and I had to take a break from the Bishop Eddy Addy message I was listening to from the Makarios church to interact with these two gentlemen. As it turns out, they were senior Managers of Rwandair and the tall handsome gentleman I referred to was Isah Byarugaba, Chief Legal Officer & Company Secretary of Rwandair (https://www.rwandair.com/about-us/our-team/) and he was with Pastor Nestor who is part of the Human Resources Team at Rwandair. Isah Byarugaba Isah Byarugaba told me he was an alum of the University of Kigali and had completed an MBA about five years ago. He also told me what a rarity it was for a lawyer to have an MBA in Rwanda and he beamed with deep pride when he informed me Professor Nshuti Manasseh had supervised his thesis. I emphasise the beam with pride because for any University to create meaningful relationships with its students, it needs to create memorable experiences when the students are active for them to become alumni who give back after they graduate. Isah told me as well that in the upcoming December 3rd, 2021, graduation, his wife was also going to graduate with a Masters degree from the University of Kigali and that his family was immensely proud of the University of Kigali. Dusabikiza Didier But my delightful experiences in my first trimester at the University of Kigali have not been Isah related alone. In asking for an upgrade at the Kigali International a few weeks before my Isah Kotoka International incident, the lady who dealt with me told me she was a student at the University of Kigali. In looking to book the Kigali Diplomat Hotel for an academic retreat, the enlightened customer centred hotel executive who served me had not only visited Ghana before but could also explain why banana is easier to find than plantain is in Kigali. Dusabikiza Didier, the hotel executive also proudly told me he was studying Public Administration in my University after I told him, I was Deputy Vice Chancellor, and he gave me a generous deal on the conference room booking. Eunice my favourite server at the Riders lounge, is from University of Kigali and in the same Kigali Heights building I have been to several shops and as soon I announce my UoK DVC credentials, I get a “oh, I am a student at UoK.” The list of students and alum who have either had or are having a UoK experience is truly remarkable, and I will end this short article with one of my best experiences relating to Miss Popularity Rwanda 2017; Miss Uwase Hirwa Honorine. Uwase Hirwa Honorine Honorine came to me as Deputy Vice Chancellor Academic because she had a problem with a Continuous Assessment Test and she needed help with rectifying same, otherwise she would be unable to graduate. I consulted the enterprising Dean of the School of Computing and Information Technology, Dr. Jean Baptiste MBANZABUGABO and we managed to find an amicable solution to Honorine’s challenges. In further interactions with Honorine, I learnt she was a born-again believer and had visited Ghana and stayed at the AH Hotel, a hotel on whose advisory board I sit. She shared photos from her time at the AH Hotel and graciously agreed to make a testimonial video for the University of Kigali free of charge. Currently a sales and marketing executive in major cement company, Uwase is one of the best experiences I had as a DVC-Academic and certainly one of the most illustrious students of our Bachelor in Business Information Technology Programme at the University of Kigali. Miss Uwase should graduate in 2022 or 2023. What does this Mean for You? What this means for you as a Parent, High School Graduate, CEO, Minister of State, Pastor, Public Sector Official, Entrepreneur, is that the University of Kigali is one of the best options for studying in Rwanda. We have a wide variety of undergraduate and postgraduate courses to meet any study appetite. At the undergraduate level we have courses that include Bachelor of Law Programmes, Information Technology, Education and Business Programmes. In Business, students can study for a variety of programmes spanning Bachelor of Sciences with Honors in Accounting, Bachelor of Sciences with Honors in Finance, Bachelor of Sciences with Honors in Marketing, Bachelor of Sciences with Honors in Procurement and Supply Chain, Bachelor of Science with Honors in Economics and a Bachelor of Public Administration and Local Governance Degree Programme. At the Masters level, we have course options that span subject areas like Finance, Accounting, Supply Chain, Human Resources Management and Public Sector Management. Please enrol now by calling +250788303386, WhatsApp to +250789009221, or email to Gifty, Director of Marketing and Institutional Advancement at domia@uok.ac.rw. We will take excellent care of you if you join us. Labour for the Future At the University of Kigali, our motto is “Labour for the Future” and my testimony as a trimester old Vice Chancellor Academic is that our students are living up to this motto by using the UoK education to positively affect Rwanda. They are graduating to become excellent contributors to Rwanda’s economic development and progress. Cheers to a prosperous 2022 and I can give you my personal guarantee that we will outdo ourselves to give you a positive student experience if you decide to enroll with us! Professor Robert E. Hinson is the Deputy Vice Chancellor at the University of Kigali and can be reached at dvca@uok.ac.rw
