Reset

I am now back where I started as a fresh BVM graduate in 2013. Back then I made a decision to pursue education and research as a pathway to my future. It has been seven years dominated by these two very related themes. I have learnt a lot. Some who we started down this path have succeeded, some changed direction, some failed and some are still struggling to make it.

I have learnt that research is an insider’s club. You have to know someone who knows someone to get into a project, to get a scholarship or to get in to the most secure jobs in that industry. The epitome of your hard work is getting into one of the best employers in this sector KALRO, ILRI, KEMRI (and affiliates), IPR and ICIPE. Yes, these people love acronyms. Once in, it is usually a gravy train to MSc., then PhD then to more.

On the other hand, the education sector is a continuous struggle to get employment into government colleges and universities. These offer job security and the best chances to progress. A second option are large private universities MKU and KEMU. It’s a real struggle getting into these. In the mean time you have to work for small animal health colleges run by education entrepreneurs for both experience and daily bread. These are the most volatile work places. They are full of use and abuse, bad bosses and bad working conditions. The main thing that these institutions have in common is placing profit above almost everything. Overcharge students and underpay lecturers is the name of the game.

With the education sector there is also a middle ground called part time lecturing in government institutions. It is a good CV builder but frankly you may never get paid. The pains of part time lecturers have been extensively described before.

And in the middle of all this is the constant struggle to get more qualifications to better your chances of getting into these preferred employers in education and research.

Overall, it has been a thankless struggle for 7 years. On this flip side, I’ve come out of it with a longer CV, experience and a master’s degree.

I am now back where I started as a fresh BVM graduate in 2013. The COVID 19 pandemic and has provided a rare reset button. A chance at a do over. With the closure of schools, reduced research and the death of someone with whom we started down this path at the same time, I’ve had an opportunity to reflect deeply on my life and what is important. I am now older and wiser and know much better how the world operates. I also now know myself much better. It is now time to change direction.

As always there are two ways to change direction. A gradual change from where I am to where I want to be or a sudden change abandoning the old and changing to the new. The gradual approach is much safer and allows use of some resources amassed in the education/research tract. However, it takes more time to reach where id like to reach. Time that I may not have. The sudden change approach is faster but riskier. However, despite which approach I ultimately settle upon, change must happen.

Finally, there is this internet meme where there are two people digging for diamonds in an underground cave. One person discovers his diamonds, albeit small, first and he is very happy about it. On seeing this the other guy feels discouraged, places his pick axe on the shoulder and gives up digging. However, we are a shown a cross section of where this last guy was digging and if he had dug just a little more, he would have gotten more and larger diamonds. This is also something to think about isn’t it.