By Christine Mirembe
Margaret Nagita Kiwanuka, the Quality and Assurance Coordinator at Uganda Christian University (UCU), is an intentional lady with a clarity of purpose.
This story about her journey to acquire her PhD is one example. With bachelor and masters degrees, Kiwanuka had been itching to return to school for doctoral studies. But she had a concern – combining a full-time job and the work she knew would be involved in doctoral studies while raising her children. As such, the classroom had to wait.
Margaret Nagita Kiwanuka during recovery with a fractured ankle
When that challenge was eased in the May 2017 intake at UCU, Kiwanuka was among the first cohort of those admitted for the PhD in Education (Administration and Management).
The program Kiwanuka pursued is a modular type – designed to develop skills, knowledge and attitude for teaching, administration, management and planning at the system, institutional and operational levels. Kiwanuka usually charts her path before she embarks on any journey. And the PhD journey was not any different.
However, even though Kiwanuka planned her study time meticulously, unforeseen challenges forced her out of her natural course, making her go beyond the normally mandated maximum period of five years for completion.
Take, for instance, an unfortunate incident that happened on the rainy morning of November 11, 2019. Kiwanuka was going to her garage, ready to head to work, when she slid and fractured her right ankle. Her husband, Steven Kiwanuka, who had left earlier to drop children at school, had to return home to get his wife to the hospital.
A procedure called Open Reduction and Internal Fixation (ORIF) was performed on Kiwanuka to start her on a healing journey. ORIF involves surgical realignment of the broken bones and securing them with metal hardware like plates, screws, or rods. Open reduction means a surgical incision to access and realign the bones, while internal fixation refers to the use of internal hardware to hold the fragments in place as they heal.
Kiwanuka spent the following months in a wheelchair, hindering the completion of her research on time. To make matters worse, the Covid pandemic struck, leading to global lockdowns that affected education institutions.
“I almost gave up,” she said. “I faced so many challenges.. I had to change supervisors several times, something that was frustrating.”
She is grateful to her husband for his support that included caring for her, their children and their home and for encouragement from the children.
“Mummy, don’t give up,” said her son, Sylvester Jonathan Galabuzi. “That’s your retirement package.”
Those words gave her strength. She resumed school in 2023, with the help of her new research supervisor, Dr. Joel Yawe Masagazi, and Dr. Mary Kagoire, the Dean of the UCU School of Education. Galabuzi, who Kiwanuka says has been a great encouragement in her PhD journey, has also completed his studies for Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering and Management at Kyambogo University.
Kiwanuka’s research topic was “Perceptions of Academic Staff on Retention Approaches in Church founded Universities in Uganda.” She noticed that several church-funded institutions are increasingly losing valuable staff to other institutions or even to better opportunities abroad and suggested a model that can help higher education institutions to retain their academic staff.
As Kiwanuka neared her thesis defense, her mother, Deborah Nakitende Gitta, fell sick and got hospitalized for two weeks.
“My mother means a lot to me; she really encouraged and supported me. When I had just started my PhD, she contributed some money to support my tuition. So, when she fell sick, I had to be with her,” said Kiwanuka.
One story from the mother was about how when the mom’s sister got pregnant at a young age, the father pulled both girls out of school.
“When she shared that story, I felt both sad and inspired. I went out to prove that girls can excel academically and that denying them education is a mistake. I’ve always wanted to show my siblings and other women that it’s possible for girls to succeed and contribute meaningfully to society,” Kiwanuka said.
.On October 24, 2025, Kiwanuka earned her doctorate at the graduation at the UCU main campus in Mukono.Seeing her children and mother at the graduation ceremony was a blissful moment for Kiwanuka
“Sundays were for church, but afterward, I went straight back to my laptop. Whenever they saw me getting out my laptop, my family often joked: ‘Mummy, PhD again?’ and I’d say, ‘Yes, PhD again’,” said Kiwanuka, a mother of four – Galabuzi, Solomon Sempang Muyinza, Martha Precious Nakandi and Marie Priscilla Nakate.
Kiwanuka also holds a Master’s in Educational Administration and Management and a BA in Education. Both degrees were earned at Makerere University. In her free time, Kiwanuka enjoys singing, especially hymns. She started singing in St. Stephen’s Church Mpererwe, near Kampala at the age of seven years and currently is a member of the Joint Hymnal Choir that ministers in various places in Uganda.
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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.
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