The Hindu: Creating leaders and fearless leaners At AKA
Hyderabad: The Aga Khan Academy near Hardware Park perfectly fits into bill of a modern school that respects the age-old ethos and promotes space for every activity a child learns from apart from studies.
Deccan Chronicle: Inter-school basketball tournement
The Deccan Chronicle reports on the inter-school basketball tournament in Hyderabad, where the Aga Khan Academy won the championship’s opening match against the Meridian School, Madhapur, with a score of 16 to 5.
The Daily Nation: Aga Khan launches academies to foster leaders
The Daily Nation reports on the inauguration of the Aga Khan Academy, Hyderabad, and how it is an important milestone in the establishment of a network of schools that foster pluralism and aim to develop the world’s future ethical leaders.
Residential Facilities
Our school culture is based on respect, integrity, honesty, fairness, empathy and good humour; and these values permeate the ethos of residential life.
The residential environment is warm and supportive, and this is reflected in the peaceful and inviting architecture of the residences. Boys and girls live in separate student residences, and all students are closely supervised by faculty and staff.
The adjustment to living away from home for the first time can be difficult for students. Our dorm parents are a carefully chosen group of teachers who live in faculty apartments in the residences. They ensure a safe, nurturing and fun-filled environment for students.
Dorm parents are trained in critical skills such as health and safety, community life and interpersonal relations. They possess a high level of energy to handle multiple tasks while offering guidance and support to the students.
We provide accommodation for members of the Academy community from both within the country and overseas, as well as those visiting or on exchange from another Aga Khan Academy. Additional teachers' quarters on campus house both resident and visiting faculty along with their families.
IB Workshops
We are excited to announce that our second IB workshop for this year will be held virtually and will take place on 5-7 October.
About our IB Workshops
The Aga Khan Academy Mombasa offers authorised International Baccalaureate (IB) teacher training workshops for Primary Years, Middle Years and Diploma Programme teachers.
To accommodate a diverse range of learners, the IB workshops are designed for both new and experienced teachers interested in increasing their knowledge and expertise about the IB programme.
The workshops include strategies and techniques for teaching IB courses effectively in the classroom and are led by highly trained IB experts. Each workshop allows teachers to assess and build their skills in the curriculum as well as understand and compare assessment criteria.
The workshops offer teachers a chance to interact directly with and offer their input to the workshop leaders. They also allow the participants to discuss and share their ideas, practices and strategies while working alongside other IB teachers from a broad range of backgrounds.
Workshop fees
The workshop fee is USD 650.
An invoice will be sent to you once we receive the payment confirmation. The fees must be paid in full before the deadline and a receipt will be issued.
Registration form
To register click here.
For any queries, please contact us at workshops@agakhanacademies.org
Ham Serunjogi: Blazing a path across three continents
Look below for a video of Ham talking about his experience at the Academy.
Swimming from Uganda
Ham Serunjogi, age 23, grew up in Uganda and started swimming competitively at age 6. His parents encouraged his academics and his athletics, and Ham excelled in both. In 2010 he enrolled at the Aga Khan Academy in Mombasa, Kenya.
On his way to Kenya, he competed in the Youth Olympics in Singapore in 2010. At AKA Mombasa, he trained and studied hard, learning leadership and teamwork. He became president of the AKA Student Representative Council. At the Academy he became fascinated by digital communication. In 2011 he conducted a school project back home in Uganda, where he interviewed the IT manager at Cineplex Uganda.
To America
Ham’s drive got the attention of educators. After graduating from the Aga Khan Academy he received a scholarship to study in the United States. He pursued a bachelor’s degree at Grinnell College, where he majored in Economics.
With a fellow Grinnell student, Ham developed an app that allowed users to send short, encrypted voice recordings that would self-destruct after they were played. It was a smart solution that anticipated the rise of privacy concerns in technology. The app could work in places where voicemail systems weren’t common, like Ghana, where his app partner grew up.
The habits cultivated at AKA continued to bear fruit, he says. “The education I gained at the Academy had an emphasis on critical thinking,” Ham explains. That critical ability for problem solving fueled his achievement at Grinnell, along with a conviction that he had something to contribute.
Taking New Ideas to Facebook in Europe
As he prepared to graduate from Grinnell, Ham let himself dream big. He set his sights on the biggest social media giant he could find. “I took an unorthodox approach,” Ham said of his strategy for getting a job. “Instead of applying online, I sent an email directly to Sheryl Sandberg.”
He received responses to his email within hours, urging him to apply online. Soon recruiters were calling to set up interviews. The interviews led to an internship on Facebook’s Global Accounts Team in New York during the summer of 2015, before his final year of study at Grinnell College. There he enjoyed a surprising degree of autonomy to tackle issues that he cared about. In his first weekly one-on-one with his supervisor, she asked him, “What are you most passionate about?” He took that as encouragement and created a new initiative.
Ham is amazed by where life has taken him.
Keeping up Connections and Giving Back
Again and again, Ham has drawn on his experiences from AKA Mombasa, and the bonds among his Academy friends remain strong. Before starting his new job in Ireland, he visited friends and family in Uganda. He still connects often with his AKA Mombasa roommate, Aleem Mawji, now a student at the University of British Columbia. Ham’s friend from the AKA swim team, fellow Ugandan Joshua Tibatemwa, followed his path as a AKA swim team star and student president. Joshua also followed Ham’s example to Grinnell, where he’s now a student. Joshua competed for Uganda at the Rio Olympics last summer.
Ham took time away from settling into Dublin life to watch the Olympics on television, hoping to catch a glimpse of his friend.
Ham has launched into a life of active engagement, creating networks that make people’s lives better. He has seen how such networks make a difference. He shows dedication to paying it forward.
This spotlight is republished courtesy of AKF USA.
Diploma Programme
The Aga Khan Academy Mombasa has been an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School since May 2005. We offer the IB Diploma Programme (DP) to students in the final two years of school (aged 16–19).
The Diploma Programme is a demanding, pre-university-level course of studies. It is internationally recognised by over 2,000 universities worldwide.
The DP has a reputation for rigorous assessment of student achievement. Each student’s performance and level of knowledge are examined internally by teachers according to set criteria. They are also assessed externally by independent examiners according to global standards applied to all IB schools.
Our students study all the subjects covered in a traditional, broad curriculum, including languages, social sciences, experimental sciences, mathematics and the arts. The DP also takes the curriculum a step further through three unique programmes:
- Theory of knowledge
- Creativity, activity, service
- Extended essay
Theory of knowledge
Theroy of knowledge (TOK) is an interdisciplinary requirement unique to the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. It encourages students to reflect on the knowledge they gain both inside and outside the classroom.
One hundred hours of classroom time are dedicated to the TOK programme. We challenge our students to question the nature of knowledge across disciplines, to recognise biases and to analyse evidence using rational thought and argument. By making our students consider and appreciate different perspectives, TOK contributes towards a pluralistic outlook.
Creativity, activity, service
Creativity, activity, service (CAS) is an important component of the IB curriculum and is required for every DP student at the Academy. Our students participate actively in a variety of creative endeavours, physical activities and community service projects. They develop self-confidence, teamwork and leadership skills, and a sense of civil responsibility.
Students take part in sustainable projects that have real and lasting effects on the greater Mombasa community. They develop strength of character and an understanding of their ability to bring about change.
The CAS programme is valued for its power to transform the lives not only of students but also the people they work with. It serves as a platform for interpersonal exchange, personal growth and greater understanding of the issues we face as a global community.
Extended essay
For the extended essay, we require students to pick a subject of their choice and research and develop this subject in a 4,000-word essay. Students may choose to investigate a subject from one of their higher-level courses more deeply. Or they can broaden their academic experience by researching a subject in a field they are not currently studying.
Through the extended essay, we introduce students to the kind of independent research and writing skills expected at the university level.
For further information on the IB Diploma Programme at the Academy, please see the admission requirements or contact us.
Online learning transition photo gallery
Since 23 March 2020, the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa has transitioned its classes to online due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. Take a look at how our students and teachers are doing with their online learning!
Financial Assistance
Admission to the Academy is based on merit. Students from all socio-economic backgrounds who satisfy the requirements for entry are encouraged to apply.
Partial to full financial aid is available to accepted students with a demonstrated need. Financial aid awards are reviewed annually and renewed only after reassessment of financial need.
For more information, and to access our financial aid application form, please see the following:
Please contact us for information about admission, scholarships and financial aid.
Application Forms
Choosing a school is an important decision in a child's and parent's life. We are here to help and answer any questions you might have.
We welcome enquiries about applying to the Academy. Our programmes are based on the principles and practices of the International Baccalaureate for primary and secondary-level students.
Please click here to see the admission requirements for all the Academy's programmes, including language requirements.
To access the online application service, please click on one of the options below.
For applicants applying from Tajikistan, please click here.