This paper studies the motivations of 130 women who returned to education after the genocide against Tutsi. After 1994, Rwandan mature women embraced university education in greater numbers due to marginalisation at work, inhabiting a subaltern position as a consequence of their gender and secondary level of education. One way of overcoming work marginalisation was to enrol in an undergraduate programme that coincided with their current job or their prospective career. This article explores how attending university increased female students' critical thinking skills. It will examine the impact of the university on their social and professional lives. By using a range of qualitative and quantitative research methods, this paper will explore the motivation of mature female students from four private and public universities in Rwanda. This paper, which draws upon a constructivist approach, argues that the female mature students who participated in this study became critical thinkers whilst at university, after acquiring both theoretical and practical skills. This was further reinforced by the critical thinking, research and self-directed study skills that they developed, which in turn enabled them to continue learning by themselves. Consequently, participation in tertiary education enabled female mature students in Rwanda to become lifelong learners.