No sibling rivalry for students Joseph and Matilda Kiwanuka

It is certainly a thrill for college students to leave behind a life they have known in their hometowns to experience a new scene in the heart of Lower Manhattan.

Take senior Matilda and sophomore Joseph Kiwanuka, for instance. These full-time students walk around campus together, help each other with late night studying and even take classes together.

Although some friendships are temporary, they are confident of this for one simple reason: they are brother and sister.

Some students cannot wait to leave behind their family and would probably cringe at the mere thought of attending college with a sibling.

"We love it and don't find it unusual at all." Matilda and Joseph Kiwanuka claim.

Even with the advantage of seeing a friendly face amongst a sea of strangers and the fact that the two are close, family ties seemed to be irrelevant when deciding the location of their higher education.

With New York City's seducing flashing lights and vibrant culture, it is easy to understand this city's tendency to attract anyone from any place around the world in a heartbeat, sibling or no sibling.

Maybe that's why both Matilda and Joseph were drawn from their hometown to experience the excitement that comes with living in this city of opportunity. As the pair confirms, "We both wanted to go to school in New York City."

Even with a number of New York City schools to choose from, including New York University (NYU) which Joseph had originally set his heart on, he opted to follow in his big sister's footsteps by enrolling in the same school.

"I had already gotten into Pace so I decided to join Matilda," Joseph said.
The decision that was chosen was a wise one as the undergraduate students recount the benefits of going to school with one another.

Unlike most students who have to call or write home to hear a friendly voice or to ask for some helpful family advice, these two are merely within walking distance.

Both dorm at 55 John Street and because of that, the pair are not only entitled to each other's help in personal situations, but are conveniently at each other's beck and call in times of academic trouble.

"Since I am excellent in Spanish, I helped Matilda out when she needed help in that subject," Joseph said.

These two have it made and will probably continue to help each other out later in their academic careers as Joseph states, "We will be taking an accounting class together over the summer."

Matilda is pursuing a major in marketing: e-business and interactive media and a minor in psychology can probably spare some of her knowledge to her brother Joseph as well, who is also a marketing major and a theater arts minor.

The pair's unique situation of attending the same school at the same time has not gone unnoticed as they recall, "Whenever we are walking together around Pace, students and faculty always ask if we are twins.

Although we are siblings, we believe that we do not resemble each other to the extent of being mistaken as twins. We have three other siblings so we know who really resembles who out of the kids," the siblings both said.
No matter what drawbacks they encounter, Matilda and Joseph remain confident in their decision to attend school together.

If home is where the heart is, it must be comforting to know that a piece of home is always accessible not through an airplane ride away but rather just a walk down the hall at 55 John Street.

"We both feel that going to school with a sibling allows you to always have someone that will be there for you.

We have a strong family bond therefore we do not encounter anything negative about going to school together. Friends come and go, but family is forever," Joseph and Matilda agreed.