Making an impact

Timothy Kaboya (MSIT ’16) is a software engineer at Microsoft in Nairobi, Kenya. His job is a natural choice for him, he has loved working with technology his whole life. Growing up in Uganda, he recalls playing with his mom’s Nokia phone when he was young and trying to learn everything he could about it. "My parents are both teachers of math and economics, so I grew up in an environment where I studied math and did well in it," Kaboya says.

Kaboya describes himself as a sportsperson and an avid reader, passionate about technology and all things African. "I could tell you anything about any country anywhere on the continent."

From Uganda, Kaboya moved to Oklahoma to do his undergraduate degree at Oklahoma Christian University. He started his degree in computer engineering but changed his mind partway through the program, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in computer science and mathematics. "I learned a lot being in Oklahoma, it was a highly enriching experience. I learned to be self-sufficient, and I explored a lot of America from California to New York."

After graduating, Kaboya stayed in the United States for a couple of months; he obtained his optional practical training (OPT) authorization and considered staying to work. "After I got my paperwork I said, 'No. I need to go home,’" and he came back to Rwanda, his high school home. "I worked for a year and heard about the CMU-Africa program." At CMU-Africa, Kaboya was able to branch out and explore his interests: he was a student communications officer, a member of the 3D printing club, and played in the intramural soccer league. During his last semester, Kaboya had the opportunity to study in Pittsburgh under some of the professors who had published the textbooks he had been learning from. "Seeing some of the really cutting-edge research gave me the confidence that you get from being at CMU, where there is nothing you can do that’s too hard," says Kaboya.

Kaboya’s education at CMU-Africa included classes in computer systems and machine learning. While there, Kaboya participated in a research class to explore the applications of his IT major in a practical context. Kaboya’s research group attempted to hack prepaid electricity tokens to see if they were safe to implement. This work was important because many places in Africa are switching to a pay-as-you-go energy infrastructure. Although the group was unsuccessful with their hack, Kaboya learned a lot in the process. He even got a job with a company that works in with these prepaid electricity systems and implemented the first such system in Rwanda.

Kaboya now works at Microsoft which he says is very rewarding as it gives him the chance to work with many programming bases and learn from so many senior engineers. "I’m being supported to learn and grow and constantly faced with new challenges," Kaboya says that his experience at CMU prepared him for all the challenges he has faced in the real world.

When asked about his advice for future CMU students, Kaboya says "They should be ready to speak up and share their opinion, be confident that they can face these challenges, and be ready to communicate that confidence. I don’t feel that there is an opportunity that is beyond you." Kaboya says that he stays in contact with the CMU-Africa community because he wants students to know that dream jobs are not out of reach.

When he looks toward the future, Kaboya says he is really excited to stay in Africa. “Within 20 to 30 years, five of the biggest cities in the world are going to be in Africa. I believe we have immense challenges ahead of us and I want to be a part of that. I want to work on products that can influence lives and impact as many people as possible.”