Where future beauties are trained: Inside the beauty queens’ boot camp

“People expect that it is all about beauty, but it is also about the brains and the way people handle themselves in all aspects of life.” says Sandra Teta, who is training a group of ten girls in public speech and how to conduct themselves in public.With another group of ten male contestants, they are huddled in small groups, chit chatting and listening to music in a wide, beautiful ball room, graced with florescent lighting and floor to ceiling curtains.They are in Alpha Palace Hotel, in Remera. Suddenly, the music goes mute. They stop their small talk.A tall young man calls them to attention. He seems to be giving them some kind of briefing. Or so I think. His name is Kevin Rubenge. For two weeks, he will drill them through different routines as they prepare for the title of Mr. RTUC and Miss. RTUC.Rwanda Tourism University (RTUC) has for the last few years organised this event. I want to know why the craze of beauty pageants has now become standard practice in all higher institutions of learning.Teta, 22, says that because of her experience as a second runner up of the Miss. SFB (School of Finance and Banking) beauty contest, she was contacted to assist the girls specifically, prepare for the beauty pageant that will be held on 9th March at RTUC main campus.Teta is a student of Business administration and Finance. She believes that from the skill they gain from the training, they are able to work for companies, as customer care officers, and in other capacities since they will have gained the confidence and practical skills of dealing with people.It is obvious that they are preparing for more than just strutting on the catwalk and trying to impress the judges.Everyday from 5pm to 8pm for two weeks the trainees will be grilled into serious pageant material. They started out last weekend and so far the results show.Unlike many other training arrangements for beauty contestants, here they are not in residential training. According to the organisers, it is because they need time to also concentrate on their studies, and do the training in the evening.Olivia Mutesi, a student at the school, is hanging around. She says she came to watch how they do the training.“I never knew that they have to go through all this kind of training. Obviously, I now know that they prepare for some thing more than the beauty contest,” says Mutesi.Beauty with brainsBut even making it into the group of twenty finalists, was no easy task. Rubengera says that care has to be taken in the selection of the contestants from a wide pool of talented young hopefuls.“We had to look at their height, sizes and weight and more importantly intelligence as key factors.”Rubengera gives trainees necessary knowledge on taking care of their physical beauty, improving their manners, and controlling their body movement in order to impress the judges.“Here they are taught how to walk, how to stand and how to express their feelings in a right way.”One by one, he guides them on stage; the girls do the catwalk, and pose before an imaginary panel of judges. Rubengera was contracted to provide these trainees with how to do the catwalk, posing and presenting themselves before a panel of judges.Walking is no easy taskFor Rubengera, training beauty contestants is not a simple task especially when they are doing it for the first time. “However if the trainees are young and eager to learn, it is very simple and less taxing,” he adds.Looking at these young people during the training, one realizes that walking is not as simple as many people think. According to him, some girls have to practice this skill for months, whereas others catch up quickly.Teta says that her enthusiasm in training beautiful girls for pageants rose because her experience in the beauty contest and that people believed in her and offered her the chance.The guild president of RTUC Daniel Komezusenge who is part of the organising committee, says the event will be a good chance to promote the University. It’s also a great way to increase awareness of organizations, those that are sponsoring the event.Komezausenga says that the winners will walk away with gifts, but stops short of revealing what they are. When I press him to tell me what the prizes are, he only says that “the prizes will be good compare to the last time.”He says that last year, the winners got presets like a two night stay at the Kivu Serena hotel, cash and others.The guild president says the beauty pageant presents many opportunities to the school and those who take part in it.“We want people to express themselves confidently, to be able to speak in Public and above all be good ambassadors of their school.”Komezausenge adds that the corporate sponsors of the event, will also use it as an opportunity to head hunt for talent and provide internship and job opportunities to students who showcase their talents through the pageant.