Scholarships

INTRODUCTION

The Ministry of Education receives scholarship offers from friendly countries.These scholarships are meant to assist bright needy students and to build capacity in areas where the Country needs specialized skills.

Ministry of Education’s Directorate of University Education is mandated to process the scholarships. This process involves advertising, selection and nomination of eligible students to take up the offers.

Process

The process of administration of scholarships take a minimum period of 21 days and entails the following:

• Approval for advertisement on local dailies the full advert on the Ministry’s website;
• Selection process including shortlisting, applicants interviews and nominations;
• Approval by Principal Secretaryof nominees;
• Submission of the list of approved nominees to the respective Embassies.

Eligibility Criteria

The eligibility criteria is based on the requirements for specific scholarships. However, the standard criteria is listed below:

Undergraduate

1. Minimum KCSE Mean Grade of B (plain);
2. Not more than 25years of age;
3. Strong grades in the major subjects that are key to the preferred specialty;
4. Completed Secondary Education in the last three (3) years.

Post Graduate

1. Masters applicants must have a Bachelor’s Degree with at least Upper Second Class Honors.
2. PhD applicants must have a relevant Master’s Degree.
3. Are below 35 years for Masters and 45 years for PhD.

The above criteria is used in the advertisements for the scholarship. The above criteria will be used in shortlisting and nomination. Additionally, during nomination, the following criteria is adopted:

1. Merit
2. Course relevance to the national development agenda
3. Gender
4. Regional balance
5. Year of completion of studies

Scholarships Types, Levelsand Numbers

• Categories/Type of scholarships: Full scholarshipscater for the cost of airfare, tuition and medical insurance in addition to a stipend which assists the student in paying for accommodation and meals. Partial Scholarships: For partial scholarships the donor country meets only part of the total expenses.  Usually the donor country pays for tuition fees only. The student must pay for the cost of air fare, accommodation, medical insurance cover and other expenses related to the course of study.

Previous Bursary Supportof Kenyan Students Abroad

• Prior to 2011, the then Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology through the then Directorate of Higher Education disbursed a bi-annual bursary to all students on Government scholarship and those on self-sponsorship pursuing degree studies abroad. The bursary was also awarded to students on self-sponsorship in local universities. The criteria used depended on the students’ parents/guardians financial ability. Consideration was given to orphaned and very needy students.
• In the years after the termination of the bursary scheme, parents are expected to cater for their dependants’ various expenses for them to complete their studies. Such expenses include upkeep, food, local travels, clothing, accommodation, medical insurance etc.
• The Directorate has received numerous communication from scholarship beneficiaries, Kenya High Commissions/Embassies, parents and guardians on the plight of Kenyan students who cannot adequately provide for the scholarship related costs.

Issues in Processing Scholarships

Some scholarship notifications have a very close deadline hence the Directorate has a challenge following the set process to the letter.

1. Issues of Students on scholarship abroad; Some result from the withdrawal of financial support by sponsors to students on partial Government Scholarships abroad with some students dropping out of courses in countries such as Russia.
2. Decreasing uptake of partial scholarships: This occurs when needy students cannot afford the living standards in foreign countries for instance; uptake for Russia has decreased from 30 students in 2011 to only 20applicants in 2021.
3. Failure to honour offers by some countries:Some countries such as India and Egypt sometimes fail to award scholarships even after the Ministry has forwarded nominees.
4. GOK Funding of MOU Obligation:Lack of a vote to meet related costs.

Proposed Mitigation Measures

1. Liaise with Kenya Missions/Embassies abroad to facilitate formation and empowerment of   students’ organizations to help new students settle down and cope with any challenges that may arise.
2. In liaison with HELB, the Ministry to offer financial support to needy Kenyan students abroad.
3. Ministry to set aside funds to meet the cost of signed Agreement obligations, for instance the ministry should reciprocate by offering short courses scholarships to friendly countries.