Soroti University on quest for Ultimate University Quiz glory

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ULTIMATE UNIVERSITY QUIZ SEASON 4

📍 Soroti University

“Once bitten, twice shy” does not seem to apply to Soroti University of Science and Technology, which is returning to the Ultimate University Quiz for the fourth time despite falling short in previous editions.

In Season Three held last year, the Soroti city-based university in Uganda's east failed to progress past the knockout stage after losing to Ndejje University, which went on to finish second behind champions Uganda Christian University (UCU). 

Soroti fell short against Ndejje by a margin of 20 points.

However, the setback has not dampened the university’s determination to aim higher in Season Four, which has drawn 20 universities to test their knowledge across a wide range of subjects.

“We still feel the pain of losing in the last season, but the good news is that we have let go of the past. Our focus is currently on winning this year’s contest,” said university coach Juma Hassan Nyene (pictured below).

Nyene said the university’s continued participation in the quiz is not merely for fun but to expose students to a wider world of knowledge and opportunities beyond their academic programmes.

“The competition exposes you to giant institutions such as Bank of Uganda, which can offer you internship opportunities. The publicity you get from New Vision is also good enough for your CV in the future."

Nyene was speaking on Friday (August 21) when he welcomed Vision Group, the organisers of the quiz, and the competition sponsors, for an orientation session for Soroti University students preparing to participate in this year's edition.

The quiz competition is supported by Bank of Uganda as the platinum sponsor, alongside the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) and Turkish Airlines.

Soroti University guild president Timothy Otim said the university has enough talent to win the competition if students organise themselves well.

“We are students who are very brilliant. We do not need to do the entire course to win. We can win when we organise ourselves well, and winning this trophy should be our priority,” said Otim.

He pointed to the university’s previous successes, including victories in the Champions of Medical Quiz, neuroscience competition in Mbarara and the Deposit Protection Fund Quiz held earlier this year.

Jonah Waiswa (pictured below), the head of stakeholder engagement at Bank of Uganda, delivered a presentation to the students on the role and operations of the Central Bank.

“Every aspect of what we are doing, whether you are in medicine or agriculture, the converging point is money. Students are the people who are coming into the economy. As we train them academically, we also nurture them by teaching them what we do as a bank,” said Waiswa.

He encouraged students to share the knowledge they acquire beyond the classroom, including through their social media platforms.

“Class alone is not enough, students. You must know how what you are studying will help you fit into your life, family and the economy."

Waiswa also called for more sectors to support the quiz, saying such partnerships would help expose students to different fields and promote all-round thinking among the country’s future leaders.

Collin Agaba (pictured below), the UCC eastern region manager, urged students to be vigilant against cybercrime as they increasingly embrace smartphones and other digital technologies.

Agaba warned them against clicking on suspicious links and messages that could compromise their privacy and financial accounts.

“Avoid clicking on sites and links that you do not know about because you may end up exposing your mobile money account to fraudsters,” he cautioned.

He urged students to use their gadgets responsibly and work together to promote online safety.

Godwin Akiza (pictured below), an officer in charge of tax education at URA, said the authority partnered with Vision Group because the quiz provides an opportunity to educate future taxpayers early.

“The big challenge we face as URA is non-compliance — not necessarily because people do not want to pay taxes, but because they do not know about them. This initiative by Vision Group provides us with an opportunity to start educating learners early because they are our future taxpayers,” he said.

Akiza explained that some people fail to meet their tax obligations because they lack knowledge about the taxes they are required to pay.

“You will find that someone has imported a vehicle but does not know that they are supposed to pay VAT on it. By engaging university students who are yet to enter the world of work, we are on the right track."

Max Adii (pictured below), the project leader at Vision Group, hailed Soroti University for its resilience, noting that their determination to win the trophy will yield results.

“The students and the university administration have promised that they are going to be more ready and better organized for this season. I wish them well because they have been in this contest since its inception."

The competition questions cover a broad range of disciplines, including banking, data protection and cybercrime, economics, tax education, airlines and aviation, agriculture, current affairs, world geography, global affairs, science, sports, the arts, commerce, environment and climate change, literature, and world history.

Cherie Namusuubo (pictured below, left), a third-year student of medical laboratory at Soroti University who represented the university in last year's competition, applauded the quiz for giving students exposure and visibility.

“The quiz made me popular because it was widely published on all Vision Group platforms. Besides that, I gained general knowledge because questions were asked from different topics,” she said.

Edwin Amanya, a fourth year engineering student who was also part of the Team Soroti University last year, said the competition was beneficial because it exposed participants to different fields while testing their critical-thinking abilities.

“They may bring questions from your field, such as medicine, and you can still fail because the questions are general and do not focus on one particular area,” he said.

Buoyed by the experience from previous three editions, Team Soroti University is now hoping that preparation and teamwork will finally propel it to the coveted Ultimate University Quiz trophy. 

📍 Next stopover: Lira University