Welcome to the University of Nairobi! I take this opportunity to congratulate you on your having been able to achieve grades that were good enough to secure yourself a place here. University of Nairobi is a premier University of Choice and a World Class University committed to Scholarly Excellence. This is where your leadership capacity will be developed. The University of Nairobi will offer you many opportunities and challenges that are all aimed at providing you with an environment within which to grow and realize your full potential.
Many have been looking forward to joining the University since you did and qualified your KCSE 2019. However, Covid-19 pandemic has prevented us to receive you physically in campus but we have to do it virtually. I am confident that very soon you are going to join us and enjoy the ambience of the University and interaction with students, faculty and staff. We have put in place a team in the Dean of Students Office working with Academic Registrar, ICT Centre, Students Welfare Authority, University Health Services, Games and Sports and Faculty Deans to ensure your pursuit of academic achievement in the University is achieved.
The first assignment of the student in the University is academic achievement and all other activities becomes auxiliary services to help achieve that one goal. Remember from now on, you will not have teachers following you to see whether you did what you were meant to do or ringing bells to make sure you are in class or in bed. From now on there will be no prefects waiting to report on your behavior or misbehavior. From now on there will be no parents checking to see whether you came home on time or slept out. All these and many more will be your responsibility and yours alone. You will have to learn to manage your own time, your own money and other resources, your own freedom and so on.
While you will be expected to excel academically, this should also be a period during which you should take full advantage of the available resources to grow morally, spiritually and in every other respect. In short, this is a time to grow in every way that makes you a whole human person. There will perhaps be difficult moments in your life here. There is only one little word I would like to tell you about that “There is no problem in this world that is so big that it cannot be overcome.” The sad part would be if you were to keep any disturbing issue to yourself. Officers such as the Dean of Students, Assistant Deans of Students, Counselling Psychologists, Medical Officers, Wardens and SMU Managers are here for that purpose. Most of your lecturers too will be willing to listen and guide you as to what to do, where to go and who to go to. Do not be shy to ask questions about any issue that affects you.
The Dean of Students will expose you to a world of career opportunities, develop your life and leadership skills, develop your spiritual and moral character, mentor and counsel you and support you in achieving your life dream. By the time you finish your four, five or six years, you will confidently say, “thank God I joined this University, it have been a life of transformative change, morally, spiritually and academically”. That shall be your testimony in Jesus Name!
Read all the joining instructions, students’ handbook and students code of conduct 2020 and always keep it near you for reference. While you are here, learn to think critically and ask questions. Do not follow the crowd. Remember if anything goes wrong you will be held responsible as an individual and not as part of a group. May Almighty God bless your stay here at the University and give you the strength to persevere through whatever difficulties that may come your way.
JOHNSON IRERI KINYUA
DEAN OF STUDENTS