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A notice to [https://www.mut.ac.ke/academic/schools.html Murang'a University] of Technology (MUT) students to avoid the institution on Wednesday and Thursday during a monkey shooting exercise has caught the attention of Kenyans online. The notice published on the notice board signed by the chief security officer Mr Kimotho had information that the students should stay away as live bullets would be used. Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) officers had been called in to address the issue of disturbance by monkeys in the institution.youtube.com KWS spokesperson Paul Gathitu Masela confirmed that indeed the exercise is ongoing but clarified that the "shooting of monkeys" notice was a miscommunication by the university.youtube.com Mr Masela told Nairobi News. The service spokesman explained that the university was to notify students that there would be a shooting. Mr Masela told Nairobi News.
This course, without doubt, is among the hardest courses to study in any Kenyan university. Of course, even when the components of the courses are studied separately, it can rock a student’s life to the core not to think of when they are both put into one. The students must have a practical understanding of the use of computers and a greater understanding of the limits on the use of computers in their own subject. In Kenya, it takes at least four years to complete this course depending on the school you choose to take it in. Though the timing seems short, the volume of work the students get to embrace within the seemingly short time is what makes it even harder. Numerous courses are usually compressed into one semester which students must embrace.
Actuarial Science is the application of mathematical, statistical, probabilistic, and financial theories in solving real business problems. Accountancy is another major that can pose a hefty challenge to the students taking on it.hillmatop.com It can be very hard and demanding especially for students who are not good with numbers. Oh yeah, you need some mathematical skills to coast through! It is a subject that you either ‘get’ it or not. Some students who don’t have the intellectual skills to handle the complexity of the subject admit that the study of Accounting is just too complex or broad. So for you to find accountancy fun, you will need to make yourself a mathematical whizz or it may become boring and nerve-wracking for you. Don’t forget that anything that has pros must have cons. So Accountancy is still one of the most rewarding courses to major in Kenya.
Obtaining a degree in architecture or in any construction related course is about refining your mind more than anything else. Of course, these courses are a silent linchpin of the society and as such require you to be technically skilled and highly creative. The students will learn how to draw technically, or the engineering know-how to support designs. Dedication is paramount when taking on this course. It needs hard work good imagination, searching for information, and also needs the ability to analyse, express the meaning and concept of design. You can excel in it by investing quality time focusing on your studies. It takes a minimum of four years to obtain a degree in architecture. Dentistry is another demanding course in which undergraduates gradually develop their technical skills on a base of academic teaching about the biology of the human body and, more specifically, the still fast-developing science behind dentistry. Do you mind telling us which course you think is as hard as these ones? Please write in the comment section below.
SHARE TO HELP SOMEONE WIN A SCHOLARSHIP TODAY! The Mawazo Institute is currently accepting applications for PhD Scholars programme. This is a one-year, non-residential fellowship aimed at women pursuing PhD studies focused on climate change and energy at Kenyan universities. The goal of this programme is to build a strong pipeline of future researchers who are prepared to ask insightful questions about African development, and effectively communicate their results to both government and industry leaders and the general public. The Mawazo Institute is a non-profit research institute based in Nairobi, Kenya. We support the next generation of female thought leaders and scholars in Africa and get policymakers and the public engaged with their research. Our priority research areas are energy and climate change.
Course Level: Scholarship is available to pursue PhD programme. Study Subject: The scholarship is focused on climate change and energy at Kenyan universities. A dedicated desk at Mawazo’s office at Ikigai, Spring Valley, Nairobi. Nationality: African students are eligible.youtube.com Number of Scholarships: In 2018, the MawazoPhD. Scholars Programme will support up to six female PhD students at Kenyan universities. Entrance Requirements: Applicants should apply for the Mawazo Ph.D. Enrolled in a Ph.D. English Language Requirements: Applicants whose first language is not English are usually required to provide evidence of proficiency in English at the higher level required by the University. How to Apply: The application for the 2018 Ph.D. Scholars cohort is now open. Applications must be submitted through our online portal. We will not accept applications submitted via email or in hard copy.
The Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service is participating in this year’s Exhibition by Kenyan Universities at Flamingo Beach Resort in Mombasa. If you are in Mombasa, visit our stand and get all the information and other career tips that you may need. The 14th Exhibition by Kenyan Universities has been organised by the Commission for University Education, and the Placement Service is a major attraction for 2015 KCSE candidates, students, parents, guardians and other stakeholders. The theme of the exhibition is "Celebrating Expansion of University Education through Diversity and Integration". Visit the Placement Service stand for information on degree and diploma programmes and on offer in universities in Kenya, career choices and placement procedure.
In observance of the 16 Days of Activism campaign, The Royal Commonwealth Society will be posting a series of blogs. Today, Faith Nafula Wafula highlights gender based violence in Kenyan universities. ‘University student, Charity Maina, raped and murdered. These are just the tip of the iceberg that is sexual and gender based violence in Kenyan institutions of higher learning.facebook.com Heartbreaking stories of despair and absolutely outrageous acts against the rights and dignity of the victims and survivors. Gender based violence is a pandemic perpetrated mainly against women and children, resulting in physical, sexual or psychological harm. 46% of women report at least one incident of sexual abuse as a child.
Culture and negative stereotypes are formed throughout childhood and extend into adulthood, affecting marriages and relationships. If these stereotypes are addressed at an early age, gender based violence incidences can be substantially reduced. Gender based violence affects youth in numerous ways. Statistics show that 25% of girls between 15 and 19 years old report losing their virginity by force. Despite this, not enough focus is placed on youth when it comes to gender policy creation and programs. Kenya has 53 universities, and the number keeps growing.eafinder.com Out of the 240,550 university students in Kenya (as of 2013), 116,115 are female. Despite the large numbers, universities have inadequate safety measures to protect students from sexual assault.
There is a clear research gap on sexual and gender based violence in Kenyan universities as sexual assault and sexual harassment in universities remains largely understudied, unreported and unpunished. However, all is not lost. Government, civil societies and campus administrations continue to make efforts towards addressing sexual and gender based violence in universities. Awareness raising efforts and student engagement continues in institutions and universities strive to fill the existing structural gaps that make sexual and gender based violence so rampant. In October, Strategic Applications International, in collaboration with AuthorAid through its youth program SEMA, held a policy conference to address sexual and gender based violence at the University of Nairobi.
The conference included participation from medical, psychosocial, security, alcohol & substance abuse departments, with most of the representation being from the student government. Government and civil society organisations working within gender based violence were also represented. This multi-departmental and multi-sectoral engagement resulted in the creation of 22 policy recommendations and an action plan for the university. The process was strengthened by making the students an integral part of the entire process. This ensured that the recommendations were made with the students’ needs and opinions at the centre. This was a huge step because it showed the university’s commitment to make the campus safer for all students, particularly the female students. The action steps implementation process shall begin in 2017, as we work towards ensuring that every university in Kenya, both private and public, has a gender based violence policy and adequate implementation strategies.
Did you attend a Kenyan university and still owe the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) money on your student loan? HELB is under mounting pressure to collect from defaulters as the Treasury cut its budget by almost 6% this year after a drop in university enrolment due to fewer high school students qualifying. University enrolment currently stands at 520,893, down from 564,507 a year ago. The university loan scheme has since 1974 supported over 645,000 Kenyans to pursue higher education at a total cost of Kenya shillings 72 billion, according to HELB records. Of the 396,680 loan accounts created to date, a total of 175,003 loanees have completed their repayment valued at Kenya shillings 16.7 billion.
About 81,994 of the accounts worth Kenya shillings 8.2 billion have defaulted. In the 2016 to 2017 financial year, HELB recovered Kenya shillings 4.1 billion which accounted for 40 per cent of its financing budget of Kenya shillings 10.2 billion for the year. HELB CEO Charles Ringera, speaking after Minister Mohamed’s penalty reprieve announcement said the penalty reprieve is valid for those who pay off the entire sum they owe. The education minister, while announcing the penalty reprieve, also said efforts were underway to ensure those in the diaspora that benefitted from the loan scheme pay up. Paul Morande, a telecom engineer in Minneapolis, is an alumnus of the University of Nairobi and a recipient of the loan scheme. He told Mshale via phone that he just recently paid off his loan when minister Mohamed made the reprieve announcement.
3,000) by paying off the loan this month," Morande said. He encouraged others to pay so that HELB can avail loans to more students. Morande, the executive director of the Minnesota Kenyan International Development (MKIDA), a non-profit that supports education efforts in Kenya said it feels good to have paid off the loan. "I call upon HELB to fast-track the conclusion of these discussions and sign the appropriate Memorandum of Understanding to enhance loan repayments by the Diaspora," said Mohamed. More details on HELB can be found on their website. As Mshale founder, he did a lot of the reporting during the humble beginnings of the newspaper.
"Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence" - Hellen Keller . However, there are many reasons for optimism and hope for the Kenyan University sector and universities, the above challenges notwithstanding. The national government has retained the state department on universities and research in its 2018 government formation. County governments continue to sponsor creation of new public universities (e.g., proposed Koitalel arap Samoei University College, Kajiado University College, Nyandarua University College, etc). It is likely all 47 counties will have a university in the next 10 years but they will be very different universities. The Kenyan household continues to pay tuition and living expenses for a significant fraction of university students.
No data is available to KENET but anecdotal evidence suggests over 90% of private university and 40% of public university students are still partially sponsored by Kenyan households. The Universities Act 2012 is having positive effect on the quality of university education. Senior university leadership of both public and private universities take CUE inspection very seriously with many requesting KENET to open the bandwidth pipe during the inspection. The University Funding Board and operationalization of the Differentiated Unit Cost will force universities to re-examine their cost structures and efficiency in the next few years for the benefit of academic programs and students. Universities, both new and old, have continued to invest in campus ICT infrastructures and automation.
This has increased their e-readiness and could therefore leverage on ICT to reduce cost of teaching and administration and to increase research collaboration and productivity. All that is required now is to focus on faculty development and to change academic policies to accommodate modern educational technology practices. Kenya has a relatively large pool of faculty with PhD. The PhD faculty could then be used to increase the national PhD throughput in the next 10 years. They could also help universities compete for national, regional, and global collaborative research grants. The fact that there are international research institutes (e.g., ILRI, ICIPE, ICRAF, KEMRI-Welcome Trust, Ampath) located in Kenya mean that the opportunities for global collaborative research grants is relatively high.
But there will need to be new ways of managing and rewarding PhD-level faculty to stop them from focusing on part-time teaching and independent consulting. Emerging focus on research productivity and research collaboration by Kenyan universities. Already, some Kenyan universities have stated their ambitions of becoming "research-intensive or "innovation-intensive" universities which means greater focus on Intellectual Property output and attracting research grants / revenue. Unfortunately, the transformation from being a "teaching or comprehensive" university to a "research-intensive" university could take about 10 years of senior leadership focus on research and innovation. All universities will have to diversify their sources of revenue and find ways to reduce their operational expenses, probably by leveraging ICT in administration, teaching and research. The challenge for you as VCs is managing the disruptive organizational transformation required that might include difficult HR decisions. See attached 2-page article on the EDUCAUSE 7 Things You Should Know about Transformation Change.
Kenyan universities are in the throes of a crisis that is threatening to explode, throwing the education system into turmoil. Granted, not everything is gloomy about the institutions.facebook.com Often unreported is the sunny side of things, which is buried in the dizzying litany of woes bedevilling the institutions. Kenya has always stood out as the region's de facto powerhouse in Human Capital Index, digital innovation and research output. The report measures the productivity of the future generation of workers, pegged on complete basic education and full health, which means at 0.52, Kenya is at the level of 52 per cent of its full potential.
The same report describes Kenya as one of the fastest growing digital economies, citing innovations such as mobile money transfers and other ICT-led developments. The University of Nairobi, Moi, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga and Jomo Kenyatta have been cited globally as top innovation hubs. Moi has won the Enactus Kenya National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Competition for two years in a row for its 'Waste for Wealth' project, which turns organic waste into tables. Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology has also won top marks in the same competition for its "Save Food Save Life" project, which works to cut post-harvest losses by preserving fruits and vegetables.
Egerton University's "Green Life Farm Kenya" idea that connects farmers to consumers has also won accolades in the same competition. Enactus Kenya gives students a platform to showcase their entrepreneurial skills through innovation. Launched in 2002 following an agreement between Enactus International (then SIFE International) and Inter Region Economic Network (Iren), it operates in 36 countries.go.ke Last month, a Mount Kenya University lecturer and researcher won global recognition for developing a bio-pesticide to manage post-harvest losses in grains. Still, for a long time Kenya has stood out on the continent as a research highflier with regard to the number of citable journals and the contributions of universities to the country's ICT innovation. However, despite these signs of robustness and prominence across the borders, most universities are grappling with the basics and are on the verge of being pushed to irrelevance. The rapid expansion of the institutions from around 15 three decades ago to 70, has meant that quality has suffered at the expense of quantity.
A section of USIU students is planning to go on strike from Thursday over what they call poor management and insensitive of the current administration led by Vice Chancellor Prof Paul Zeleza. According to the school of science students who are mostly from the Bachelor of Pharmacy course, the university grading system is too high and failing students en masse so as to get them to repeat courses and make further payments. The USIU grading system is high and has been a bone of contention with most students claiming that they are not being treated like other students in the country.mut.ac.ke Bachelor of Pharmacy students has not been in class for the whole semester, failing even to take their mid-semester exams. As the semester near the end, the students have insisted that they are not going to resume classes unless the issues are addressed.
