Humanities & Social Sciences
CHUSS orients Cohort 2022 of the PhD fellows funded by Gerda Henkel
The College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHUSS) on 30th January 2023 officially welcomed the Cohort 2022 of Gerda Henkel funded PhD fellows in a ceremony that was presided over by the Principal represented by her Deputy Assoc. Prof. Eric Awich Onen.
11 fellows in this Cohort 2022 were facilitated with new Mac Book Air laptops to help the in their studies in a ceremony attended by college leardership including Principals,Deans, Heads of Departments, project and programme coordinators, administrative and technical staff.In 2021, the college received 10 PhD fellows, another 10 in 2020 and 14 PhD fellows 2019 funded by Gerda Henkel Siftung Foundation.
In his welcome remarks, Dr. Eric Awich congratulated the fellows upon admission to Makerere University saying, they were fortunate to secure the scholarship.
“Now it is up to you to convert the confidence of the selection committee in you and reward them by your hard work. All our students awarded under the Gerda Henkel scholarship have done very well and most of them finish on time. In the next 73rd Graduation ceremony, 8 out of the 23 PhD graduands are funded by Gerda Henkel.
That tells you the productivity of the programme, it also gives the encouragement that you are going to have all the support you need as long as you want to study and attain your objective. You can lead a horse to drink water but you cannot force the horse to drink water”, Dr. Awich advised.
Dr. Awich challenged Ugandan students not to be scattered doing many things but focus and take their PhD programme serious to complete in time and also to contribute part of their time to support the departments.
Awich gave an overview of CHUSS as an important and one of the biggest colleges in the university constituted by five schools, instititutes and centres with a student population of eight thousand among other features.
He reported that the college is ranked high in the production of the highest number of PhDs with 23 candidates to be presented in the upcoming 73rd graduation. In 2022, the college presented 25 PhDs while in 2021 CHUSS presented 22 PhD graduands .
In terms of support, Dr. Awich reiterated that the college has what is needed, from supervisors and all physical and online resources for the fellows to succeed.
Introducing students to the PhD candidature in CHUSS, the Dean, School of Liberal and Performing Arts Associate Prof. Patrick Mangeni reminded students that they are funded and expected to graduate within three years.
“I welcome you to the PhD programme. We are starting in January 2023 and you are graduating in February 2026. Be clear about that, that you have three years and in three years, you should be done with your work and anything to do with extension after three years, is something not welcome”, The Dean warned.
Prof. Mangeni informed students that in addition to having the supervisors, they will have doctoral committees to support the supervision. Between this orientation and one year, Mangeni said students will be expected to be developing their proposals as well as attending courses. He implored them to utilise online resources such as getting a link from the graduate school that guides on expectations from a PhD candidate.
“You will need, as graduate students to utilise online resources under the graduate school. There is also a post graduate handbook that you can get online. Please acquaint yourself with that. It will give you all the information about supervision, procedures, policies and all stages from entry to exit”. Mangeni advised.
Other pieces of advice were on changes on topics that may move away from the mother departments, the need to have at least two publications before graduation, utilisation of support spaces such as seminars, conferences, libraries and submission of progress reports.
The project coordinator, Dr. Edgar Nabutanyi reported that 11 fellows out of the 162 applicants succeeded for the scholarship, imploring students to be proud of themselves for having succeeded among the many who showed interest. He however cautioned that this success comes with responsibility.
“That comes with a big responsibility to the effect that when you think of yourself and your position in this cohort, know that you will take one position for 161 potentially good applicants and therefore, it is imperative on you to do what you have to do but also to reward the college which saw potential in you and gave you this opportunity”, Dr. Nabutanyi emphasised.
Dr. Nabutanyi underscored that being a full time PhD training, the only job for the fellows was to read books, write proposals, articles and dissertations for the next three years. Nabutanyi implored the fellows to study the almanac, follow it and convert it with the help of the supervisors into their own working document.
Nabutanyi cautioned students against describing themselves as Gerda Henkel students but rather, first of all, as students of Makerere University that offered them the provisional admission and then the department where the intellectual supervision is to be undertaken.
“Therefore, familiarise yourself with your department, its traditions, work ethics and its research interests and resources. Don’t isolate yourself but locate yourself in the department and be a visible member of the department”, He urged.
He alerted the fellows that PhD training is a serious academic activity, and an initiation into the world of scholarship that sometimes tends to be lonely with high impact draining on physical and intellectual resources. He advised them to utilise the cohort as a support system in this hard task.
Gerda Henkel Siftung Foundation was established in June 1976 by Lisa Maskell in memory of her mother Gerda Henkel as an incorporated foundation under civil law, headquartered in Düsseldorf. The Foundation provides financial support for the historical humanities and particularly, research projects that explore current issues in a larger historical context or consciously focus on topics of relevance to the present or the future.
On the morning of Friday, February 27, when the academic procession winds its way across Makerere University’s Freedom Square for the last day of the 76th Graduation Ceremony, Whitney Najjuka will walk into history with a number beside her name: 4.46.
At Makerere, that number means First Class Honours. It means the Vice Chancellor’s List. It means she graduates as the only First-Class student in Journalism and Communication this year. But numbers, as Whitney has learned, rarely tell the full story.
Born on March 27, 2002, in Nabbingo, Kyengera Town Council, to Margaret Kusemererwa and Fred Kasirye, dreamt she would do Law, one of the disciplines, prestigious, almost inevitable next steps for a student who had excelled in secondary school. She had done everything correctly. Studied hard. Scored well. Followed the script.
But Makerere University had other plans. She missed the pre-entry mark, but found her name under Journalism and Communication, another prestigious course offered by the Journalism and Communication Department at Makerere University.
Najjuka began her academic journey at Muto Primary School in Buwama, earning 8 aggregates in the Primary Leaving Examination, a performance that positioned her strongly for secondary school.
She would later join St. Lucia Hill School, Namagoma, where she earned 20 aggregates at O-Level and 17 points in History, Luganda, and Divinity at A-Level.
Missing her dream course, Law, felt at first, like a detour. But Whitney was encouraged by Sanyu Christopher, her uncle, and she settled for a government-sponsored slot in the Bachelor of Journalism and Communication at Makerere, which she had applied for before.
She entered uncertain. But she graduates transformed.
The Pivot That Became a Purpose
Whitney speaks of her early university days with candor. She did not arrive at the Department of Journalism and Communication with a burning childhood ambition to be a journalist, but because another door had closed.
Then, Social and Behavior Change Communication happened. Applied Strategic Communication happened. She began to see media not as headlines and microphones, but as architecture, shaping how societies think, argue, and act.
The turning point came in her third year. The Female Journalist Foundation published her story on Sexual Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) and its emotional toll on survivors. What startled her was not its publication but the reaction. Comments flooded in. Debates ignited, especially about the role of men in combating GBV.
“I realized media doesn’t just report,” she says. “It frames how society views a crisis.”
Her voice, once tentative, had entered a national conversation.
The Discipline Behind 4.46
At Makerere University, a First Class CGPA is not built on brilliance alone but on ritual.
Whitney’s ritual began with showing up, on time, every time. She treated lectures as appointments with her future self. She refused to confine her learning to the syllabus. While attending workshops at the Aga Khan Graduate School of Media and Communication and obtaining external certifications, she sought and was open to mentorship through the Public Relations Association of Uganda (PRAU).
She wanted theory anchored in practice. And then there was the commute.
From Nabbingo, a hill in Wakiso District, some 18.6 km to Kampala, where the Makerere Main campus is situated, and back, nearly 20 hours a week dissolved into Kampala traffic. Two-hour journeys before 8:00 a.m. lectures. Dust. Noise. Headaches. She learned to manage energy the way others manage time. Fatigue became a tutor in resilience.
“I had to be intentional with every remaining hour,” she says. “Excuses were not an option.”
Learning to Practice Communication
If classrooms taught her analysis, presentations taught her courage. Pitching projects, defending research, and standing before peers quick to critique forced her to think on her feet. She was no longer simply studying communication; she was practicing it.
In 2024, the AGMES Fellowship at the Aga Khan Graduate School of Media and Communication pushed her further. She received funding to produce a capstone project on the mental impact of gender-based violence on survivors. She identified sources, conducted interviews, handled trauma with care, and worked with professional editors.
The Communication, she learned, is logistics and ethics as much as eloquence.
The Future She Sees
Whitney is optimistic about Uganda’s media landscape. The digital shift, she believes, has democratized influence. Young communicators are no longer confined to legacy newsrooms or offices.
Yet she sees a gap in the absence of structured research on sustainable, ethical, profitable independent media ventures in Uganda. Her ambition is not only to practice communication, but to study it. To produce data-backed frameworks that help young Ugandans transition from graduates to media entrepreneurs.
She wants to make the impact scalable.
What Remains
As the only First-Class graduate in her cohort, she is careful not to mythologize herself. “Success isn’t brilliance alone,” she says. “It’s a daily commitment when nobody is watching.”
Even before graduation, Whitney had stepped into the industry through a mentorship internship at Capital One Group (COG EA Ltd), a strategic marketing communications agency operating across East Africa.
At Capital One Group, we spoke to Paul Mwirigi Muriungi, the Managing Director and Head of Strategy, who spoke of Najjuka as a progressive and intentional young professional who approaches her work with curiosity, maturity, and responsibility.
“Her attitude is exemplary. She is teachable, receptive to feedback, and eager to grow. While technical skills can be taught, character, work ethic, and mindset determine long-term success, qualities that Whitney consistently demonstrates. Given her academic excellence and professional application, we believe she has a bright future both at Capital One Group and within the wider communications industry. She represents the kind of talent the profession needs: thoughtful, adaptable, and committed to excellence.
“We look forward to seeing her next chapter unfold,” says Mwirigi.
Najjuka’s gaze extends beyond her own trajectory. She speaks of what the Department could become. Furnished and equipped with industry-standard equipment, newsroom simulations, and deeper investment in data journalism as prayers. Her excellence is not self-congratulatory, but it is forward-looking.
“The University should support the Department to procure industry-standard equipment. Access to high-quality cameras, sound booths, and updated editing software like Adobe Creative Suite is critical to our learning environment,” she says.
Adding that, “We need a newsroom simulation, a physical or digital space where students work under real-time deadlines to produce content for the public. That would prepare us for industry and even strengthen the University’s own media platforms.”
In an era defined by metrics, algorithms, and digital traceability, data journalism is no longer a niche skill but a sine qua non of credible reporting. “There should also be more focus on data journalism and search engine optimization. These are no longer optional skills. Students would benefit immensely from stronger training in these areas.”
Dr. Aisha Nakiwala, the Head, Department of Journalism and Communication, says the faculty are very proud that she is graduating with a First Class—the only one in this year’s cohort.
“This achievement reflects not only exceptional intellectual ability but also discipline, resilience, and sustained dedication to the highest standards over four years. Graduating with first-class honors is no small feat; it requires consistent outstanding performance.
“Her accomplishment sets a powerful example for continuing students and reaffirms our department’s commitment to nurturing excellence. We are confident she will make meaningful contributions to the communication profession and society at large,” says Dr. Nakiwala.
On graduation day, applause will crest and recede. The gowns will fold back into wardrobes. The transcripts will be filed away in cabinets. But something quieter will endure; a young woman from Nabbingo who once missed her Law mark, who spent 20 hours a week on the road, who discovered that storytelling is power, and who now walks into Freedom Square not by accident, but by intention.
Life, as she has come to understand it, lives on.
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