State sponsorship for private varsity students delayed

The admission of State-sponsored students to private universities has been delayed to next year due to lack of rules to guide the selection.

The Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS), which is tasked with varsity admissions, said students sitting in this year’s Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination will be the first to be sponsored by the government in private institutions.

“Currently there is no mechanism in place to admit the 2013 candidates,” said John Muraguri, the acting KUCCPS chief executive.

The government had planned to admit some of the 123,365 candidates who scored C+ and above in last year’s national exams to private universities.

This could have opened the way for the students to join the likes of Strathmore, USIU and Daystar and still enjoy government sponsorship in a move aimed at addressing the shortage of spaces for qualified candidates.

The private universities keen on admitting government-sponsored students will first have to review their admission dates. Mr Muraguri said the State-sponsored student will join the private universities only in September.

He was speaking on Wednesday during a stakeholder forum that brought together participants from private and public universities as well as colleges keen on admitting government-sponsored students.

READ: Search now starts for private varsities to tap State-funded students

KUCCPS, which replaced the Joint Admissions Board (JAB) in February, had asked private universities keen on the arrangement to register with it before April 19.

The Business Daily failed to establish the private varsities that have signed up with KUCCPS.

The announcement comes as the Education ministry prepares to name trustees for the University Fund, which is mandated to cost varsity courses afresh.

The fund is the creation of the Universities Act of 2012 and its responsibilities include advising the Cabinet secretary on university funding, developing criteria for allocation of funds to varsities, establishing the minimum pay for lecturers and costing courses in public universities.

The fund will reach an agreement on the average cost of courses provided by the private universities that will admit the State-sponsored students.
This will help establish the amount of grants per student the State will offer the private varsities.

On Wednesday, Mr Muraguri said the government will pay the amount of school fees determined by the university fund, with the difference being met by sponsors and the Higher Education Loans Board (Helb).

READ: University tuition fees set for first review since 1995

Currently, the government offers a grant of Sh86,000 per head to the public universities. But this figure is due for review as the government seeks to review the maximum charges for each course, which will make science subjects costly compared to liberal arts.

The appointment of trustees for the fund will also set the stage for review of university fees paid directly by the students, which have remained unchanged since 1995.

Under the new arrangement, private universities will give the selection body a list of the courses they are willing to include in the scheme and the number of slots available.

School leavers will be presented with the collated list from all chartered universities in Kenya to choose their preferred course and university.

The shift is expected to be a big win for private universities and colleges who have for years complained that JAB denied them the opportunity to admit top students to their institutions.

Enrolment of students to public universities has grown three-fold from 62,677 learners in 2002 to 194,528 last year, putting a strain on teaching facilities.