With the release of the 2022 KCSE exams came a chorus of voices from the education sector urging the government to raise the qualifying score for university admission.
Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu reported that just 173,345 candidates out of a total of 841,416 students achieved a grade of C+ or above in the 2022 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education examinations.
The number represented the approximate number of high school graduates who would be guaranteed university admission. However, the data indicated that 668,071 students (or 79 percent) tried and failed to get into the required number of schools.
The numbers prompted parents to lobby for a reduction in the admission requirement, allowing for more pupils and ultimately leading to the full shift.
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However, Agnes Wahome, CEO of the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS), said that the government will not compromise on education quality despite the pressure.
She pointed out that prospective students may earn a certificate in lieu of a degree if they so desired. She also mentioned that students now have less hurdles to jump over thanks to university support.
The chief of KUCCPS also confirmed that the government had previously decreased the admission threshold to the present C+ grade.
“No, we cannot lower the education standard to accommodate the majority. If you look, the number has been lowering in the past years. What we are doing is encouraging candidates to transition from diploma to degree and universities have made it easier for this to happen,” she noted.
Wahome also said that the site for course review will be made available by KUCCPS two to three weeks after the national exams were made public.
“We usually get the results from the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) before we prepare the portal for revision of courses. So it takes two to three weeks after the release of the exams hence expect it around mid-February,” she affirmed.
KUCCPS was established under the Universities Act, 2012 and is responsible for coordinating the placement of government-sponsored students in Kenyan universities and colleges, creating and implementing career counselling programs, and disseminating information about various university courses.
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