For many students in Uganda, university means juggling tuition stress, tough courses, and worry about jobs after graduation. For Shimon Atuyambe, one opportunity flipped that story.
Shimon was picked in 2022 as one of the first Equity Leaders Program scholars in Uganda while at Solberg College on Rutooma Hill in Kabale District.
Being in the first group was exciting but uncertain. There was no blueprint to follow, no alumni to seek advice from, and no precedent for what the experience would become.
With other pioneer scholars, she helped lay the foundation for a program that now supports thousands of young Ugandans. Early on, it felt simple.
“When we joined, we thought we were simply entering a bank internship,” she recalled. “Later, we realised we were joining a family.”
That sense of family shaped her next years. The program mixed leadership training, mentorship, and real work experience. At university, Shimon stepped into student leadership, starting as a club secretary before taking on bigger roles.
Money stress also eased. Through structured holiday internships at Equity Bank branches, scholars earned income while learning banking hands-on.
“It gave us freedom,” she explained. “We no longer had to worry constantly about what to eat or how to buy academic materials.”
With fewer financial worries, she focused on studies and growth. It paid off in 2024 when she graduated with a First-Class degree in Bachelor of Guidance and Counselling from Kyambogo University.
Graduation wasn’t the finish line. It was a new start. Her internship began at Equity Bank’s Kabale Branch, then moved to other branches. She rotated through the Equity Leaders Program coordination team, Know Your Customer (KYC), and digital banking support. Those roles built practical skills while the bank saw her discipline and adaptability first-hand.
Today Shimon works full-time as a Relationship Officer in Payments and Channels at Equity Bank Uganda’s Market Street Branch. For her, ELP’s biggest win is closing the gap between school and work.
“By the time we graduate, the bank already knows our discipline, our work ethic, and our potential,” she noted.
Instead of job hunting for months, she moved straight from graduation into employment, backed by trust and experience built over years in the program.
Speaking at the recent Cohort 5 ELP Commissioning event at Africa Bible University, she had advice for new scholars:
“Do not wait to be pushed,” she advised. “Be willing to learn, ask questions, and solve problems.”
As a pioneer scholar, Shimon says she’s proud to see ELP grow and reach more students across Uganda. Her journey shows what happens when talent meets opportunity.
Through the Equity Leaders Program, Equity Bank Uganda is doing more than funding top students. It’s creating career paths, building leaders, and preparing young people for real futures.
For Shimon, the path from Kabale to a banking career proves that with the right support, ambition can become achievement, and dreams can become professions.
