U N D E R G R A D U A T E S T U D E N T PROFILE
Faces of LIFE
Brian Muntanga LIFE:
His Home
Away from Home
From early-in-the-morning rugby practice
to afternoon business classes, each day, Brian
Muntanga divides his time between his
two interests.
Muntanga, an undergraduate Business
Administration major, also holds the position
of hooker on Life University’s rugby team. He is
one of the team’s forwards who, during scrums,
plays in the front row to ‘hook’ the ball back with
his foot.
Also, a skilled linguist who speaks four
languages (English, Tonga, Shona, Ndebele),
Muntanga, from the Tonga tribe, hails from
Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. He says that prior to
coming to LIFE, back home he basically spent
all of his time at Falcon College, the boys-only
boarding school that he attended since he
was fifteen years old. Being approximately 30
miles away from home, he was only able to see
his family every three months or so. And while
playing rugby since he was twelve years old, he
“LIFE is so great. The people here
are very open, and I think that
has to be one of the school’s best
qualities. If you need anything,
someone will be there to help.
Plus, it’s a place where you can
freely speak with your
instructors on a more
personal basis since the
classes are smaller here
than at a huge university.”
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notes, “When I wasn’t in school, I was on tour
with the national rugby team called Zimbabwe
Schools Rugby. And I really enjoyed that because
I got to see a lot of new places.”
Regarding his other interest, Muntanga says
that when he was home from school, he would
help his father in his business, which produces
detergents and lubricants for industrial and
institutional use. “I made sure that shipments
and supplies were well organized and helped
with anything else that I could. My mom also
has her own business — a small clothing shop
in town. The fact that they each run their own
business was a big factor in me choosing to
study business. Growing up watching them, I
knew that I wanted to do that as well.”
So, after completing high school, Muntanga
started looking for a school where he could get
his business degree. In the process of doing so,
he also sent out his rugby highlight reel, and Life
University’s Coach Colton Cariaga responded to
Muntanga. “He told me that he liked what he
saw, and we started communicating regularly.
The next thing I know, I’m here in the U.S.
at LIFE!”
Muntanga says that the campus atmosphere
here reminds him of Falcon College’s more
intimate atmosphere. “LIFE is also a small
university that makes me feel welcome — not
out of place at all. It’s very diverse and open,
so I have had no problem fitting in here.”
However, about our Georgia summer
weather, he finds it quite hot. He
muses, “I tell people that it’s hotter
here than in Zimbabwe, and they
don’t believe me.”
In addition to attending class and playing
on the rugby team, Muntanga also serves as
Vice President of the Campus Activities Board (a
student group that plans and facilitates events
here at LIFE). He notes that it is important
to create activities outside of the classroom
so that students can have a fun outlet away
from studying and also so they can meet their
fellow students.
With all of these responsibilities, it does not
leave Muntanga with much free time, so he says
that he mostly ‘hangs out’ with his fellow rugby
players. But then again, rugby does play a large
part in his life since he attended Falcon College
on a rugby scholarship and is now attending
LIFE on one. Muntanga even notes that while he
did consider another school, Arkansas State, after
he saw LIFE’s rugby results compared to theirs,
he decided to come here. He says emphatically,
“I’m going to go to the winning school!”
Muntanga realizes that a career in rugby is
not a long-term option due to how hard it can
be on the body. He says that while he would love
to be a professional rugby player, even if he did
so, he would still retire at 30 or 35 years old and
focus on putting his business education to use.
As a matter of fact, after graduating from LIFE,
he would like to pursue an MBA and stay in the
United States and pursue a sales career, just the
way his father started his own career.
As Muntanga reflects on his time here, he
says, “LIFE is so great. The people here are
very open, and I think that has to be one of the
school’s best qualities. If you need anything,
someone will be there to help. Plus, it’s a place
where you can freely speak with your instructors
on a more personal basis since the classes are
smaller here than at a huge university.”
Someone far from his home and family,
Muntanga would like to make special note of the
Life University Rugby team, about which he says,
“… without whom I wouldn’t be here. Thank you
for the support and friendship!”