Mercy Nasubo Wasike, class of 2015 graduate, is excelling in her career journey and is most grateful to Strathmore University for laying a strong foundation.

Graduating with a second-class upper in a course she deemed difficult, Mercy states that were it not for her lecturer’s persistence and her self-determination, she is not sure where she would have been now.

In January 2011, Mercy joined Strathmore to study an ACCA course, as she awaited her KCSE national results. She was set to study medicine in university.

Not long after her programme started, her results came out and Mercy obtained a strong mean grade of A of 83 points. She knew her journey was in medicine, but as she continued with her ACCA programme before receiving her university admission letter, she learnt about Finance and the new Financial Economics (FE) course that mathematics enthusiasts are joining. She weighed her options and in June of the same year, Mercy enrolled for the FE course.

Strathmore’s FE course laid the foundations for Mercy’s academic journey. What she learnt as an undergraduate really helped her with building her theory for the Master’s thesis.

I studied my Master’s course at University of Nottingham in Malaysia. Prof. Robert Mudida’s Economics class, Ferdinand Othieno’s Financial Modelling classes and the Accounting classes really helped me with the Master’s journey. I managed to come up with a good theory for my thesis based on what I learnt in those classes at the undergraduate level.  

Mercy also learnt to study independently and perform well to excel while at Strathmore. All this, combined with other advice like how to dress well and living ethically, together with what she had learnt at Precious Blood High school molded her to be the person she is today.

I once told my lecturer Mr. Othieno that I hate the assignments and the work I have to do and I will cross out finance, because I felt the course was difficult. But I finished and finished well.

Aside from academics, Mercy engaged in sports activities. She played number 4-5 in basketball thanks to her 5’9 height. She also competed in athletics during Strathmore Sports Day.

After completing her undergraduate course, Mercy worked for Diamond Trust Bank and Genghis Capital before she was taken on permanently at Genghis.

Mercy then began to apply to university and was accepted to study a Masters in Finance and Investment programme in Malaysia, which took one year and two months.

In her Master’s journey, Mercy attended a Career fair where she engaged the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) representatives and consequently applied for a position in the Asia Pacific region. Although she did not get the position she wanted, Mercy was hired to work for Corporate Actions in the bank which she joined in December 2016.

Working internationally is a good experience because of the mixed culture. I work with Canadians, Britons, and Americans which enables me to learn a lot. There is an open-door policy, I literally sit next to my boss in the office which allows me to participate in many things. RBC, as the biggest bank in Toronto, has opened me up to a lot of opportunities. I am so grateful.

Aside from excelling in her studies, Mercy enjoys music and dancing, fashion and style. She also blogs in an effort to inform travelers on the kinds of food to expect and enjoy in Asia using @nairobian_foodie.

I manage to enjoy this side of life because of the advanced systems in Malaysia. Food is cheap which allows me to blog on all sorts of food. I also work at odd hours because my working hours are tired to those of Luxenberg. This allows me to use my free time to do all the activities I enjoy.

I am motivated to excel by my father’s achievements. He has done very well for himself. I also read a lot of motivation books that teach me different ways of understanding life.

Mercy advises students to take their interests seriously to excel in life. And when they fail, to not give up but keep trying again and again. They should be self-motivated and dedicated to excel

As they continue to declare their goals and set their standards, there is nothing they cannot achieve.