At An Advanced Age, Mwesigye Returns To University To Study Entrepreneurship

By Isaac Akugizibwe

KIU, Main Campus - For James Mwesigye, returning to university is not about adding another qualification to his name. It is about turning years of experience and knowledge into something that can help create opportunities for others.

Mwesigye, a Ugandan senior citizen and retired professional, has enrolled at Kampala International University to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management.

His decision to return to formal education at an advanced age is rooted in a long-standing passion for entrepreneurship, job creation and lifelong learning.

“I wanted to do entrepreneurship because I have a strong feeling, having gone through life and seen what it is, that at the end of the day every person is an employee,” Mwesigye said. “And you can’t be an employee if you’re not an entrepreneur.”

For Mwesigye, entrepreneurship should not be treated as a course reserved for business students. He believes it should be incorporated across academic disciplines because graduates from different fields need the knowledge and skills to create opportunities for themselves and others.

“I have been saying, instead of focusing on these other courses, entrepreneurship should cut across all the courses because I feel all these people want to be entrepreneurs,” he said.

His interest also has a social dimension. Mwesigye is particularly concerned about employment challenges faced by people with disabilities and wants to understand more about how jobs and businesses can be created.

“People with disabilities are challenged when it comes to getting jobs,” he said. “Deep in me, I have been telling myself that this is an area I need to get an understanding of. Maybe I could help people.”

Although he describes himself as highly knowledgeable and informed, Mwesigye said he wanted to formalize his knowledge through academic qualifications and develop his ability to organize and communicate what he has learned over the years.

“People call me, and when they meet me and we engage, they think I am the PhD holder,” he said. “But part of wanting to do this is to really formalize my knowledge.”

His return to university also carries a message for young people who stop their education after earning a diploma.

Mwesigye said he once hoped to have earned a doctorate by age 60. However, raising a family became his priority. He and his wife have four children, two boys and two girls — all of whom are university graduates.

“I concentrated on my children,” he said. “Now that is done, God has given me four children. Two boys and two girls. And all of them are university graduates.”

Having fulfilled that responsibility, Mwesigye has turned his attention back to his own academic ambitions.

He researched universities before choosing KIU, paying particular attention to accreditation and the availability of his preferred program. He said KIU offered the combination he was seeking.

“I found that KIU is the university that would help me in attaining a program of my choice,” he said.

The flexibility of the program was another attraction. Mwesigye said distance learning, e-learning, and weekend study options are particularly important for students balancing education with work, family, and other responsibilities.

Despite being retired, he remains open to advancing beyond his bachelor’s degree.

“As long as God gives me the energy,” he said when asked whether he would pursue a master’s degree and eventually a PhD.

For Mwesigye, age is not a reason to stop learning. It is another stage at which knowledge can be pursued, organized, and put to work.

“God blessed us with pursuing knowledge and wanting to understand wisdom,” he said. “These are the things that I want people to understand: how best we could work at this time.”