Bachelor of Business Science Finance Economics student Titoh Gachuhi Tibi, set to graduate with a 1st Class honours in the upcoming graduation, accords his great achievement to hardwork, believing in himself, and putting in the hours to be the best.
The exceptional 22 year old Titoh, was the former SUFFESA club chair, was recognized as the most outstanding male student of his year, is a member of a singing A Capella group, and these are just a few of his many achievements.
Why Financial Economics?
I was passionate about Economics in general; I felt that this would be the best channel to make a contribution towards the development of our country and the African region at large. This is also a channel to help the need stemming up from economic challenges that face Africa.
Why Strathmore?
I was looking for a place I could study Economics, and a friend of mine who had studied with the first lot in this course strongly recommended me to join Strathmore. I also felt studying at Strathmore would give me a competitive edge among graduates from other universities.
How did you get a student Loan?
Initially I joined Strathmore as a self-sponsored student. However my dad got unwell and there was a huge financial strain on the family. I therefore thought it would be wise to apply for a financial aid; later in that year my dad passed away and the university was gracious enough to grant me a loan under the Strathmore University loan program.
Part of the arrangement with this loan is that if you perform well; getting an average of A 60% of the amount disbursed to you will be written off, if a B average 30 % and if a C average 10 %. By Gods’ grace I performed well and I was granted the 60% waiver. I will be graduating with a 1st class honours.
What motivated you to study hard and maintain an A average?
The 60% waiver was a strong incentive for me to work hard, needless to say, before this loan came into being I was still working hard. I always feel I need to be the best in what I do, during my studies I felt that I could and I had the potential to do so and hence my succeeding.
Ultimately, I believed that a strong academic performance in my undergraduate studies would significantly increase my options for either working or advancing my studies.
What did it take to be the chairman of SUFFESA?
Between September 2014 and September 2015 I was the chairman of the Strathmore University Finance and Financial Economics Students Associations (SUFFESA). How I came to be in this position stemmed from my 2nd year, where I was the class representative for matters to do with the club. Therefore, in 2014, I vied for the chairman seat and I guess my classmates had confidence in me to deliver the tasks for this association and voted me in.
My main responsibility/what I achieved, was mainly driving a stronger connection with the industry by inviting key reputable industry personalities, e.g. former KCB CEO Martin-Oduor Otieno to speak to the members of SUFFESA.
I was also involved with working on a research paper with a student’s association club in Italy. We haven’t quite finished the paper, but I believe it will be completed in the next tenure.
How has your Strathmore Experience been?
I would concur with anyone who would say Strathmore teaches you to work hard, I learnt to work hard. I studied a lot of units, prepared for many assignments and I still had to excel in my exams. I needed to put in a lot of study hours per week to excel. I would put in more than 25hours, especially in 3rd year and 4th year, both in my personal studies and assignment related studying.
Other than that, I got many opportunities to excel in other areas outside of studying. E.g. taking up responsibilities in clubs which grew my leadership and interaction skills. Not to forget, interaction with the industry, was a big plus for studying here.
At some point in my studies, I participated in the CFA local rounds, where we valued KCB bank and gave recommendations on whether investors should buy, hold or sell their shares. We presented this analysis to a panel of CFA charter holders. That was one of my best experiences in Strathmore.
What is your band about?
Outside of Strathmore I sing with a group called Mabolozi A Capella. I sing the tenor voice. I’ve always enjoyed singing and listening to music. Therefore I joined this group with an interest of exploring my singing talent, so that it doesn’t go to waste. We meet two Saturdays in a month for practice keshas, where we practice throughout the night. We have already recorded two songs and we hope to record a full album by the end of this year, hopefully.
Before Strathmore University what Highschool did you attend and how did you perform?
I went to Strathmore School where I attained a mean grade of A in my KCSE national examination.
