KTN's Akisa Wandera Graduates Among Top in Her Class

KTN News anchor Akisa Wandera in studio
KTN News anchor Akisa Wandera in studio.
File

KTN News anchor Akisa Wandera has crossed off another milestone from her list after graduating from the United States International University (USIU) in Nairobi.

The sassy-voiced anchor was awarded Cum Laude distinction on Saturday, September 26, as she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from the School of Journalism, Cinematic and Creative Arts.

Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, the soft-spoken anchor disclosed that she returned to school to solidify her ground academically and to better herself to become a complete expert in the field.

"I always wanted to go back to school, but this was not possible before moving to my current employer, it was not easy before.

KTN News anchors Michael Gitonga and Akisa Wandera in studio.
Former KTN News anchor, Michael Gitonga and Akisa Wandera in studio.
File

"I figured perhaps to solidify my stake as far as papers are concerned, and to become an expert, you have to go to school," she stated.

She further explained that since joining KTN in 2016, she always had a desire to advance her education, and was granted the opportunity by the nature of her job at the Standard Group.

She described Journalism as a career she yearned to build, so she figured going back to school would do the trick for her.

"I went to school immediately after I joined KTN. I joined The Standard Group in March 2016 and decided to immediately enroll at the university.

"I joined school in May, USIU. I took a semester or two off in 2017 because of elections, then went back to finish," she added.

Prior to joining KTN, Wandera who graduated from the Kenya Institute of Mass Communication (KIMC) in 2013 worked as an anchor at Ebru TV.

In a previous interview, the anchor revealed that her first day at the KTN job was nothing less than baptism by fire, as she had to dive straight into the deep end of her journalism profession.

Wandera challenged young people studying or just beginning their career in journalism to have an open mind, and think about creating content and new technology because times have changed.

"As much as the media space is shrinking on one hand, it is expanding on the other. It is about time we let go of the rigidity of either radio, TV or newspaper and expand into new spaces.

"Let them be very open minded. It is a very competitive industry. They have to be very updated and read widely," she advised.

The Standard Media Group Mombasa Road Offices . Thursday, October 14, 2019.
The Standard Media Group Mombasa Road Offices . Thursday, October 14, 2019
Simon Kiragu
Kenyans.co.ke