Billy Byiringiro, a winner of the 2021 Rhodes scholarship. He will study MSc in Computer Science at University of Oxford and a DPhil (PhD) in Autonomous Intelligent Machines and Systems. PHOTO | CYRIL NDEGEYA | THE EASTAFRICAN
Billy Byiringiro was beyond ecstatic when he found out that he was the recipient of the 2021 Rhodes scholarship to pursue postgraduate studies.
He is the first Rwandan to win the oldest graduate scholarship in the world — a prestigious international scholarship established in 1903 that enables students to study at the University of Oxford.
He beat off competition from other applicants from the five East African countries.
In a few months he turns 23, and will graduate with a first class degree in Artificial Intelligence and Computer Science from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, where he studied on another scholarship.
He gets excited talking about the learning opportunities offered at the University of Edinburgh. Besides his programme, he participated in several Hackathons in the UK, including an IoT one where he worked on a Smart Irrigation project, self-drive cars, the business side of computers and interned in big companies.
“Never in my life had I imagined I would attend one of the top universities in the world, I attended public schools throughout,” he said.
Byiringiro’s story began in a small village in Muhoza, Musanze where he was born in a family of four children. His father passed away when he was young, so they grew up with their mother.
He said from childhood, computers have always fascinated him, especially with photoshop, 3D, and other programs and “as time went on I became increasingly curious about how they function.”
He studied Ordinal Level at Groupe Scolaire Janja in Gakenke District, Northern Province, after which he was admitted to Saint-André secondary school in Kigali where he excelled at National Exams in computer studies.
Byiringiro has always been curious about computers, and even at high school he continued to learn on his own and experiment with computers. In his final year, he created a digital library programme for his school, together with a classmate.
His passion for using computers to change people’s lives paved the way for his scholarship to study in Edinburgh, thanks to Bridge to Rwanda.
While at Edinburgh, he became a class representative for his informatics class, and also captain of the university intramural basketball team.
Billy Byiringiro showcasing an AI prototype he built. PHOTO | COURTESY
Together with other tech brains from Africa, he co-founded BuniTek, a student-led social enterprise that introduces young people in Africa to new technology through interactive activities.
He has interned at a number of tech and software start-ups in the UK, and was the winner of the Microsoft and Ears IoT hackathon.
“Curiosity has led me here, I always asked questions, there’s no one dramatic thing that I did, I just remained consistent” he said.
When I asked him about how he dealt with the cultural shock, coming from Muhoza to Edinburgh, he said the weather was very cold, and it took him some time to adapt to it.
“The shift to the western education system was tough, most courses in Rwanda are not hands-on, at Edinburgh we even wrote essays for a mathematics exam, to show that you know what you are doing,” he said.
“The Scottish accent also needed some getting used to.”
Getting used to their food was also difficult as he was used to eating isombe, invangye, igisafuriya.
“I was more interested in the intellectual opportunity this gave me, so whatever adjustment I needed to make was to enable me to achieve my goal.”
He said computer science is about finding an efficient way to solve problems, while artificial intelligence is about finding the most optimal solutions.
When I ask him which particular problem, area or gap in Africa he seeks to address using his computer skills, he said education.
“I am passionate about the education system, how AI can improve our education and business, for instance machine learning for students, data analysis.”
Thanks to the Rhodes scholarship, Byiringiro will study MSc in computer Science at the University of Oxford, and a DPhil (PhD) in Autonomous Intelligent Machines and Systems, an opportunity he is incredibly grateful for.
“I am very grateful, I will be able to learn advanced courses in what I am passionate about and benefit from the large network.”
When I ask him where he envisions to be in 10 to 15 years, he said, “For me it's not about what I will become, it's about what I will be able to solve.”
Who were his competitors for the scholarship?
His competitors were other scholars from other East African member countries of Burundi, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.
There were 2,300 overall applicants, 10 finalists from all countries, from both international and local universities.
What did the competition entail?
All competitors are selected from a pool of students who have exhibited academic excellence in their respective professional courses.
The Rhodes Selection Committee looks for excellence across academics, personal energy, leadership, character, and a commitment to service.
A statement from the selection committee said Billy Byiringiro impressed the committee in all these areas, in the context of an incredibly talented group of finalists from all five countries in East Africa.
He was selected after a virtual selection process due to Covid-19 — the first time in the history of the Rhodes Scholarships when final interviews have not occurred in person.
Competition started in the summer of 2020. The first stage was the submission of a personal statement, involving writing about what makes one tick, passions, goals and what you hope to do in the world and how the Rhodes programme will help you in achieving that. Applicants also submit a CV and academic transcripts, and references.
The shortlisted candidates had to participate in a social engagement where they met interviewers and fellow candidates to get to know each other and discuss various topics before the final interview.
The final personal interview was with Rhodes programme alumni and other renowned individuals.
Is Byiringiro on scholarship in Edinburgh?
Yes, he is a Mastercard Foundation Scholar. A gap year college preparatory programme called Bridge2Rwanda helped him through the application process to the scholarship and the university.
He got the scholarship after excelling in computer science at St Andre secondary school in national exams.
He will graduate this year with a first-class degree in Artificial Intelligence and Computer Science at Edinburg.
BuniTek
Byiringiro is a co-founder of BuniTek, a student-led social enterprise that introduces young people in Africa to new technology through interactive activities.
Together with other computer science and technology scholars from Africa, he inspires young people from other African countries to come into technology.
They partner with schools and organise technology camps, where they show students ways to create simple e-commerce platforms, as well as how to create other simple data platforms/websites that are cheap and easy to operate.
They also introduce them to artificial intelligence.
The internships...
While pursuing studies at Edinburgh, Byiringiro interned at a number of tech and software start-ups in the UK, and was the winner of the Microsoft and Ears IoT hackathon, which was a coding competition for hackers and coders.
Is Byiringiro mentoring anyone?
Yes, he is mentoring some students from his former school Saint-André secondary school who are pursuing computer science, as well as friends who are interested in tech. He also offers guidance and mentorship to some students in the Bridge2 Rwanda community. He also teaches tech courses in BuniTek and advises the participants in their tech journey.
Byiringiro’s story began in a small village in Muhoza, Musanze where he was born in a family of four children. His father passed away when he was young, so they grew up with their mother.
He said from childhood, computers have always fascinated him, especially with photoshop, 3D, and other programmes and "as time went on I became increasingly curious about how they function."
He studied Ordinal Level at Groupe Scolaire Janja in Gakenke District, Northern Province, after which he was admitted to Saint-André secondary school in Kigali where he excelled at National Exams in computer studies.
Byiringiro has always been curious about computers, and even at high school he continued to learn on his own and experiment with computers. In his final year, he created a digital library programme for his school, together with a classmate.
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