How Kepler shapes and inspires students to explore career options.

It is never too late to pursue your passion.

Is there anything that inspires you more than knowing that there are people who have your back, are willing to support you to grow professionally and advise you to make the right decisions for your future? That is Kepler through the career choice module.

It is inevitable that as future graduates, students will need to make decisions that have profound impact on their future careers. This, however, is usually difficult for some. At Kepler and through the Career Choice module, students are guided and  given the opportunity to untangle what has been ambiguous; especially, when it comes to understanding available career choice options and how to make informed decisions during selection.

Towards the end of 2021, Kepler, through the Career Choice Module hosted Arnaud Nibaruta, a Kepler Alumnus in Healthcare Management, a current reviewer at Southern New Hampshire University and a Co-founder of Dot Pharma; Fabrice Dusengumuremyi, a Generation Rwanda Alumnus, and current Registrar at Kepler and Jean Marie Vianney Hitamungu, Kepler’s Country Director in Ethiopia to share different insights with students about career choices. The speaker sessions are part of Kepler’s innovative model to inculcate real world experiential learning for students in all modules to give them a 360 view of the labor market.

In sharing his experience, Arnaud cautioned students to learn how to overcome challenges and learn to position themselves depending on the needs of the job market. He reminded students to be proactive and to continue learning because these are traits that will be helpful in every situation.

Fabrice, spoke about different career pathways to explore by sharing his journey at Kepler when it was still Generation Rwanda. He reminded students how the job market is competitive, and hence one has to be competent enough to get that dream job. In addition, Fabrice advised students to grow their network for a spirit of continuous learning, to think critically, avoid distraction and follow the careers that they are passionate about.

For Jean Marie Vianney, his passion to have generational impact on people in his field led him to pursue a career in education even when his academic background leaned towards a career in projects management. With passion, hard work, and persistence, good outcomes are always guaranteed, he highlighted. Jean Marie, recalls that the above traits enabled him to persevere through the rejections when he applied for jobs. Today, as he continues to grow with Kepler, Jean Marie’s advice to the young ones who might be in a hurry and tempted to give up, to never feel it’s too late to pursue what they are passionate about because it is always worth it.

The events of the past 2 years have transformed the whole labor market and the workplace dynamics. This, in turn has transformed careers, carved new career pathways and the way we can all interact with the labor market. With Rwanda being at the front in embracing technologies, it is paramount to recognize that the new habits formed during the uncertain times of the COVID-19 pandemic will unlikely retreat. Instead, they will continue to shape and reshape societies and the labor market. As students, it is critical to track and embrace these changes while being bold in making those tough decisions to identify niches in the midst of uncertainties and remain true to themselves by pursuing their passions. Pursuing one’s passion, although pressed by challenges, is always worth the effort. With proactiveness, networking, perseverance, and continuous learning, one’s career journey yields good outcomes both personally and professionally.