Going through mountains of research books, emptying your pockets and dealing with a hawk-eyed supervisors are some of the key problems PhD students have to go through so as to claim the honor.
PhD life as a student is basically eliminating your sweet social life, and giving all the time to libraries and laboratories
It is a journey many Kenyan women have already walked through, but only a few of them are re-writing history by owning up to the status at a seemingly very tender age.
Here is a list of Kenya’s youngest PhD students
Salome Aluso
Aged at 27 years old, Salome is pursuing higher education and student affairs at Ohio University
Her story is that of a resilience girl, especially when she almost left school for her baby when she got pregnant in her second year at the varsity.
However, her setback turned out to be her source of motivation.
“Growing up, my role models, and possibly the only role models around me, were our teachers. My parents were respected teachers in the community and day in day out I witnessed them make a difference in and out of the classroom. So, I grew up with the desire to be a teacher and be part of this noble profession,” says Salome.
She graduated from University of Nairobi with a bachelors degree in English and Literature
She lated joined Ohio in USA on a Fulbright scholarship for her Master’s degree in linguistics.
Salome Aluso also works at the same school on part-time basis as a language teaching assistant.
“I’ve been told I’m too ambitious, that I should find a husband first, or else I’ll scare men away. I’ve been told, ‘Kwani wewe haya masomo yako hayatawahi isha?’ (Are your studies never going to end?) But again, I know what I want in life, and I’m going after it. Hopefully, I’ll be done soon and can happily be a social being again.” Salome says.
Grace Moraa
Grace Moraa, from JKUAT University, is one of the prolific researchers in Kenya in the field of biological sciences.
The young bright mind has been widely cited with both local and international journals, based on her research findings.
“I always knew I wanted to be a researcher but it never occurred to me that I would move so fast. I enrolled for my master’s even before I graduated with my first degree,” says Moraa,
She now working to earn a PhD in biotechnology . But currently working as a research assistant at the same university
Phyllis Imelda Ochieng
In 2011, Phyllis Imelda who is now 31 years old graduated with a first-class degree in analytical chemistry from the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKuat)
She joined the University of Nairobi (UoN) for her Masters in pure Chemistry which was financed by KAAD, a German-based organisation of Catholic bishops
She graduated in 2015 where she sought employment at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) as she prepared for her next venture into doctoral education.
At JKUAT aimed to own a PhD title, she took over her research under the title Reduction of Aflatoxins in Chicken Feeds and Chicken Food Products, aims at shaping food safety policy.
Today she serves as a part-time lecture at the Technical University of Kenya, where she earns her living working as a research assistant
“Today, there is a huge problem of aflatoxin contamination in chicken feeds, which end up in chicken food products such as eggs and meat. This in turn poses a serious health risk that no one is addressing at the moment,” she says.
Phylis says that studying a PhD is not a big task, only if you put your whole mind and time together for it.
“Studying for a PhD shouldn’t be difficult if you put your mind to it. Unfortunately, not everyone is usually willing to put life comforts aside for a while and even quit a job for a while to concentrate on their studies,” says Phyllis, who hopes to work for a top research institute at the end of her studies.
Dr.Purity Ngina
She hold the record of Kenya’s youngest PhD holder after graduation with a doctoral degree in 2018 at the age of just 28 years old.
She graduated with a PhD in Biomathematics .
On June 29, Dr. Purity Ngina was among the three doctorate graduates at the Strathmore University in 2018.
Below are 10 interesting facts about the young doctor of philosophy
- In June 2018, Dr. Ngina made her way into history books by becoming the youngest PhD holder in the filed of Biomathematics
- The topic of her PhD thesis was founded on the relationship between HIV and Mathematics
- She was born in Mbiriri village in Nyeri County, where she went to school bare footed and fetched water from River Sagana
- She walked 3Km just to fetch water for their domestic use
- She got 235 out of 500 marks in her Kenya Certificate of Primary Education, her late mum advised her to repeat KCPE which she later scored 368 marks out of 500
- She was admitted in Tumu Tumu High School in Nyeri where she struggled paying her school fees among other personal school needs
- Dr. Ngina despite the tussle, managed to score a B+ in her KCSE exams earning her a spot at Egerton University
- She went on to study a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics which she gained a First Class honours.
- That earned her a scholarship and went on to study a Masters in Applied Mathematics after getting First Class honours degree, in 2013.
- In 2016 she joined Strathmore University as an assistant lecturer. She worked hard and managed to get a PhD through a The German Academic Exchange Service which had paid her PhD fees.
