University Students to Face a Financial Shock
University Students to Face a Financial Shock. Students who have been admitted to colleges and other higher education institutions will be able to apply for financial aid for their studies beginning Thursday through the recently opened Higher Study Financing Portal.
This certainly indicates the end of government-sponsored higher education, which students have previously received without regard for their financial position. Students now have only one month before the start of the academic year at universities and technical and vocational education and training (Tvet) institutes in September to submit their finance applications.
Government loans, bursaries, and scholarships will be utilized to pay for tuition, with the former being prioritized for vulnerable and extremely impoverished individuals. Less needy people will receive more loans, while more needy people will receive fewer scholarships.
Additionally, students will submit loan applications to fund their living expenses while enrolled in classes, as they have in the past through the Higher Education Loans Board (Helb). All scholarship, loan, and bursary applications will now be submitted through the new platform.
Students who do not qualify for or do not receive adequate government aid will have to pay extra for their education out of pocket.
Since the presidential proclamation on the start of the new funding model on May 3, 2023, the government has established and finished the Higher Education Financing Portal to receive applications for scholarships, loans, and bursaries for university and Tvet students. When announcing the placement results yesterday at the Kenya School of Government, Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu stressed that students who require financial assistance must apply correctly through the Higher Education Financing Portal.
As a result, I have directed vice chancellors and principals to ensure that admission letters are sent by August 2, 2023. Students would be able to apply for loans and bursaries between August 3, 2023, and August 27, 2023, at midnight, he said.
The CS added that a Means Testing Instrument (MTI), which he described as scientific and reliable, will be used to determine the financial need of students.
Mr. Machogu, on the other hand, indicated that continuing students would be unaffected by this funding system and would instead receive their cash in accordance with the present government plan.
According to Mr Machogu, over 45,000 university students and 42,000 Tvet candidates among the 2022 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) candidates who are eligible for placement fall into the vulnerable and extremely needy category and are thus eligible for full funding through government loans and bursaries.
Needy students receive a maximum grant of 82% of the program cost and a loan of 18%. Students in greatest need will receive a maximum grant of 70% of tuition costs and 30% in the form of a loan.
“Through full government funding, students from low-income families will have an equal opportunity to pursue higher education and a military career.” As a result, according to Mr. Machogu, their family will not be obliged to contribute anything to the program’s cost, and the student will also receive maintenance from the loan.
Students in the needy group would receive a maximum grant of 53% of the program cost and a maximum loan of 40%. Furthermore, the percentages will vary according to each participant’s MTI evaluation.
University Students to Face a Financial Shock
The cost of the program into which a student is accepted influences the amount of financial aid they will get. At universities, different courses cost different sums. Before students submitted placement applications, the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) required them to reveal the prices. Furthermore, colleges were required to provide a 15% reduction on the overall cost of all courses.
A medical degree, for example, will cost Sh612,000 at Kenyatta University (KU), Sh461,210 at Kisii University, Sh612,000 at Moi University, and Sh539,750 at the University of Nairobi (UoN).
A pharmacy degree costs Sh428,000 at KU and Sh418,710 at Kisii University. UoN estimates the cost to be Sh413,950. Moi University charges Sh612,000 for the course, whilst UoN charges Sh521,050.
A bachelor’s degree in the arts is the most affordable university degree. KU charges Sh153,000 in annual tuition, Kisii University charges Sh122,485, Moi charges Sh153,000, and UoN charges Sh160,653.
The placement and funding strategy was developed in collaboration with the Universities Fund, Helb, and KUCCPS. According to Charles Ringera, CEO of Helb, the new model will promote equity in higher education finance as compared to the previous system, which was based on equality.
Students could only apply for student loans through Helb before, and universities were handled by the University Fund. It distributed the capitation payment directly to the institutions using the differentiated unit cost, which is based on the cost of a program.
Students who were not placed in their favorite programs or colleges reacted negatively when the results were revealed.
The placement was purely chosen by merit and choice, according to Agnes Mercy Wahome, chief executive of KUCCPS.
“I’m disappointed and perplexed.” What are the options, and what can we do? My son received an A+ (84 points). A father lamented that he was assigned to the Technical University of Mombasa for the Diploma in Medical Engineering.