Mass transfer of students hits new universities hard

KUCCPS chief executive officer John Muraguri. He says nearly half of students who were not placed for courses have been reached out to. PHOTO | FRANCIS NDERITU | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Services has given students who wish to change institutions and courses eight more days to do so.

  • Among the universities that could not fill half their advertised slots are Turkana, Garissa, Rongo, Taita-Taveta, Eldoret and Kabianga.

  • Kenyatta and Masinde Muliro have been running adverts asking students to transfer their course to their universities.

  • KUCCPS said 5,747 of the 69,151 candidates who scored C+ and above did not secure placement in any degree course.

The ongoing transfer of students selected for degree courses could incapacitate universities that did not attract nearly half of their available spaces.

Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Services has given students who wish to change institutions and courses eight more days to do so.

The transfer started on May 1 and is expected to end on 31.

KUCCPS chief executive John Muraguri said nearly half the students who were not placed for degree courses have been reached out to and placed accordingly as directed by Education CS Amina Mohamed.

Among the universities that could not fill half their advertised slots are Turkana, Garissa, Rongo, Taita-Taveta, Eldoret and Kabianga.

Others are South Eastern, Machakos, Karatina, Scot Christian, Laikipia, Embu, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga and Pwani.

BOOST FIGURES

In most of these universities, some courses received less than 10 students.

Dr Muraguri said the placement and inter-institutional transfers has seen universities that received a low number of students boost their figures.

“Though the process is premature, there is a mass movement of students,” he said.

Kenyatta and Masinde Muliro have been running adverts asking students to transfer their course to their universities.

In the 2017 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education test, 606,394 candidates received results and out of this, only 69,151 scored C+, the minimum grade required for a degree course.

DEGREE COURSES

From these, only  62,851 were successfully placed in courses of their choice. Of the number, 36,945 or 58.78 per cent are male while 25,906 or 41.22 per cent are female.

 A further 553 students who qualified for degree courses opted for diploma programmes.

KUCCPS said 5,747 of the 69,151 candidates who scored C+ and above did not secure placement in any degree course.

Of these, 2,128 did not apply while 3,619 did but could not competitively secure placement. 

The service warned students of fraudsters and asked them to make payments only after application through a mobile phone money transfer paybill number provided by the institution.