Freshers advised on time management as they join university

First year students have been warned to be time conscious as they start earning marks towards degree awards from year one and not in third or fourth year.

Mount Kenya University vice chancellor Prof Deogratius Jaganyi said first year students often get confused by university life where no one is monitoring them.

“It is your personal responsibility to ensure you attend classes, you complete course work, sit and pass examinations every semester and, finally, graduate on time,” he said.

Addressing new students at MKU last week, the vice chancellor said students who lose focus end up taking too long to complete their studies. 

“Time management is life management. Start managing your time now and not tomorrow. Avoid distractions because it is important to focus on the goals not obstacles,” he said.

Daganyi told the first year students to become adept at managing difficult times.

 “Challenges are part of life. As you begin your studentship, you will encounter difficult days and choices. Roger Crawford said that “being challenged in life is inevitable, being defeated is optional,” he added. His speech was read by acting deputy vice chancellor (Administration, Planning and Institutional Advancement), Dr Peter Kirira.   

Welcoming new students to MKU, the VC said it takes personal drive and personal leadership to take the transformational journey.

 “Ask yourself, how do I become competitive in the job market or in the business world when I graduate? Most unique and good ideas flow internally and not externally. It is therefore important to have your own strategy on how to walk the journey of transformation,” he said.

He told the students to be ready to be transformed by first defining what they want to be by the end of their studies.

Prof Jaganyi told students to be patient as personal transformation takes time and change does not happen overnight. 

“Transformation involves learning new things. Learn from your lecturers and your fellow students,” he added.

“Evaluate your performance every semester academic year and eventually you will see results at the end of your study period.”

Jaganyi told the students to relate well with fellow students and teaching staff as it is the only way to get an opportunity to learn from them. 

The VC said students must be ready to experience discomfort.

“In a race, one must get tired, sweat, sometimes fall short of breath and naturally you may want to quit. This is a new environment you are not used to. You meet new people from different parts of the region, do things that you are not used to and for sure this can be scary," he said.

"Growth is always uncomfortable, you must embrace the discomfort because when you practice tolerating discomfort you gain self-confidence and eventually you will grow.” 

Jaganyi advised the students to make maximum use of all the resources provided, including rich academic faculty, state-of-the-art learning facilities and co-curricular facilities.

“There is a great opportunity for you to succeed in academic, co-curricular activities and talent development, sports, film and creative and performing arts etc. focus on becoming an all-round graduate,” he said.

Echoing the words of Jaggi Vasudev, Prof Jaganyi said,“Self-transformation is not just about changing yourself. It means shifting yourself to a completely new dimension of experience and perception.”