The Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) will open its application portal for the 246,391 students who qualified for university admission in the 2024 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations.
KUCCPS CEO Dr. Agnes Mercy Wahome said the agency has received the details of available capacities from universities, and they have 300,000 slots, which is more than the number of qualified students.
“We’ll place all students who qualified and who will apply for placement,” Dr. Wahome said.
KUCCPS Application Portal to Open Before End of March
Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba told the Committee on Education of the National Assembly that the portal will be open before end of the month.
“We agreed to first open the KUCCPS portal. Additionally, we agreed that by end of this month, the portals will be open for university students. We are now working on what should happen next and addressing related issues,” Mr. Ogamba said.
But uncertainty looms over student funding after a High Court ruling that quashed the government’s 2023 funding model.
Student Funding Model Uncertainty for 2024
In December 2023, the High Court cancelled the student-centred funding model, leaving the government without a clear framework to fund students joining public universities.
KUCCPS had appealed the ruling but the court refused to stay the decision meaning the agency must go ahead with student placement without linking them to funding.
As a result, KUCCPS will not display the cost of programmes on the application portal, a change from previous years.
“We can’t display the cost of the programmes. Placement and funding have been delinked,” Dr. Wahome said.
The previous funding model required students to:
- Apply for scholarships through the Universities Fund (UF).
- Apply for tuition loans via the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB).
- Get an upkeep loan from HELB (except for private university students).
Government Stops Sponsoring Students in Private Universities
In a policy shift, the government has stopped sponsoring students in private universities.In a January 15, 2024 letter, Mr. Ogamba instructed KUCCPS not to place government-sponsored students in private universities. The reason was a directive from President William Ruto.
“This is a reiteration of the policy adopted following the roll-out of the student-centred funding model that delinked placement from funding,” the letter states.
The government owes private universities over Ksh 45 billion in unpaid tuition fees for students previously placed in private institutions under the sponsorship program.
Public Universities Facing Enrollment Decline
The funding model has pushed more students to enroll in private universities as per KUCCPS data for the past two years.
To address the funding crisis, President Ruto appointed a committee to review the funding model. But Education Ministry has not acted on the report citing the ongoing court case.
What’s Next for 2024 University Students?
- KUCCPS will soon announce the exact date for applications once its board gives final approval.
- Students will not see tuition fees displayed on the portal due to the delinking of placement from funding.
- Only students joining public universities will be eligible for government scholarships and loans.
- The government is still working on a new funding model, with uncertainty on how continuing students will be funded.