Preparing students for life after graduation

The realities engulfing the higher education sector call for a paradigm shift in many aspects.

It is becoming clear that institutions can no longer be satisfied with graduating students and wishing them luck.

The job market has become viciously competitive.

EMPLOYMENT
There are 50,000 graduates joining the shrinking labour market every year.

Higher education institutions must now develop programmes and projects that will empower graduates to fend for themselves.

At Kenyatta University, we recognise the importance of not just investing in young people’s dreams, but also developing the right structures to harness and nurture talent to excel in business and entrepreneurship.

INNOVATION
When we started the Chandaria Business Incubation and Innovation Centre (CBIIC) on July 2011, the goal was to provide the right environment for young start-ups with brilliant ideas.

Innovation depends not only on how specific actors (enterprises, research institutes, and universities) perform, but on how they interact with one another at the local, national and international levels.

And, our experience offers valuable lessons for other institutions.

PRIVATE SECTOR

The university is building an innovation culture by equipping students with the physical, digital, social, and cultural infrastructure to create solutions to 21st-century challenges.

Many graduates have inventions that could revolutionise the way we live but lack the support avenues to actualise their ideas.

We recognised this gap and invested in the incubation partnering model with the private sector and other organisations to see inventors bring their dreams to life.

START-UPS
The CBIIC has incubated 116 start-ups and 40 per cent of them are at the revenue stage.

Eleven companies are at the post-revenue stage.

Some of the start-ups include a firm that offers a smartphone-controlled car alarm.

The firm has a working product that is patented, registered and is now seeking investors.

MOBILE PHONE

There is also a start-up that produces high-tech pre-natal and post-natal solutions to reduce infant mortality.

The baby anti-chocking alert uses ultrasound with no imaging to detect any substantial decrease in tracheal diameter and raise the alarm.

Finally, a new start-up has developed a system that uses mobile phones and PCs to address accidents, car-related crime such as carjackings, theft of vehicles and car parts.

TRAINING

To increase the vibrancy of the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem, the centre is implementing several projects and programmes.

They include a capacity building project in partnership with a German university, HNU.

The project involves training lecturers and instructors who will be instrumental in innovation and entrepreneurship.

PARTNERSHIP

Some 25 lecturers will be in Germany over the next four years under the training of trainers programme.

After training, they will work with the team from the centre to support student projects that will be developed into start-ups.

Kenyatta University is also working with Wadhwani Foundation (WF) to support start-ups and SMEs.

Wadhwani supports initiatives in job creation and fulfilment in Asia and expanding to East Africa.

UNIVERSITY

The message is clear: The era of producing white collar graduates is over and the economic environment is no longer conducive for students chasing degrees merely to be employed.

We must prepare students to be job creators.

I subscribe to the school of thought that the core function of any university is research and training.

We are now being challenged to enable the dreams of our alumni by giving them the tools they need to succeed in the world.

Prof Wainaina is the acting Vice-Chancellor of Kenyatta University