Revealed: How family monthly income determines your child's university funding

Finer details of the new university funding model have emerged, revealing how monthly family income determines how much a university student gets from the government.

The family income, according to details released by Higher Education Principal Secretary Beatrice Inyangala, also determine how much fees parents will pay for their children's university education.

Students from the poorest households earning less than Sh6,000 monthly will pay the lowest fees, while those from families raking in Sh120,000 and above will shoulder the heaviest burden.

The government funding will be provided in two levels; scholarships and loans. 

Students from homes earning less than Sh5,995 will get the highest amount of government funding.

For these students, the government will pay up to 95 per cent of their university tuition fees through a scholarship and student loans and the family will only be required to pay five percent of the fees.

They will offer a scholarship of 70 per cent and get student loans equal to 25 per cent of their fees.

A student pursuing a course whose annual fee is set at Sh200,000 will get Sh140,000 as a scholarship and Sh50,000 in loans to be paid after they finish their studies whereas, the parent will be required to pay Sh10,000 as fees.

Students from households earning an income of Sh5,995 to Sh23,670 will be classified in Band Two and get the second highest amount in government funding of up to 90 percent.

For these students, Inyangala said the government funding has been divided as follows: Scholarships will be awarded at 60 percent while Loans will be 30 percent of the total annual fees. The students will pay 10 percent as direct fees.

This will mean that a student pursuing a degree course valued at Sh200,000 annually will get Sh120,000 in scholarships, Sh60,000 loan and the balance of 20,000 fees to be covered by the parent.

Households making between Sh23,571 and Sh70,000 are classified in band three.

This will see a student joining a course valued at Sh200,000 get up to 80 per cent in government funding and 20 per cent fees covered by the parent.

In such a case, the government will pay Sh100,000 as scholarship and Sh60,000 in loans while the parent will be required to pay Sh40,000.

Students classified in band four will be those from households with a monthly income of between 70,001 and 119,999.

Inyangala explained that students who will get the least government funding will be from homes earning above Sh120,000.

They will be the least beneficiaries of government funding getting 60 per cent of scholarships and loans; each 30 per cent.

On the other hand, the parent is required to take care of 40 percent of the total fees.

In a scenario where the student course is valued at Sh200,000, it will mean that the student gets a scholarship of Sh60,000 and a similar amount in loans while the parent will pay up to Sh80,000.

The income data is based on a scientific tool known as Means Testing Instrument (MTI), which has been faulted as not accurate in determining income brackets.

Critics, including legislators and the incoming education Cabinet Secretary, Julius Migos, argue that the tool may not accurately reflect the financial status of many families.

Ogamba spoke during his vetting before the National Assembly Appointments Committee chaired by National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang'ula.

Ogamba noted the new University Funding Model is facing teething problems because the Measuring Testing Instrument (MTI) is not effectively  assessing the level of need for funding students who apply for scholarships.

In the new funding model, the Measuring Testing Instrument (MTI), is used to scientifically determine students’ need levels for scholarships and government loans.

“The funding formula has some teething problem because the MTI is not wide enough to identify the income level of parents and hence group the students in certain level,”he said.

However, PS Inyangala on Wednesday said that the family income will be assessed alongside other factors such as the number of children in the family, previous school, disability and even gender.

In the first year of implementation of the new funding model, the government placed 17,601 students in Band One representing the neediest students.

In band two, there were 19,953 students, in Band three 20,293 students were placed and in band four there were 46,853 students.

Band 5 which represents students getting the least government support got 8,042 students placed in this category.

However, a document tabled before parliament in June shows that some 9,726 appealed the categories that they were placed in.

Out of this, the document tabled indicated that 4,087 were successfully reviewed and moved to other categories and 5,639 were unsuccessful.

Surprisingly, some 569 students placed in Band One, the most needy category, appealed their classification.

This means the students disputed that they were very needy as this is the students that receive the highest funding by government and we’re declining this high funding opportunity.

In Band two 797 students appealed, in band three 1787 also appealed.

The biggest disputed category was Band 4 where 5,633 students contested the classification while another 940 also lodged an appeal from Band 5.

Meanwhile, time is running out for prospective university students hoping to secure government funding.

Despite the government waiving the ID requirement for scholarship and loan applications, only 83,922 students have applied so far, according to Higher Education Principal Secretary Beatrice Inyangala.

With the new academic year set to begin in September, there is growing anxiety among students over the funding situation.

The second cohort of the new university funding model is set to be admitted beginning this September.

The Saturday Standard has established that some institutions, including Chuka University, have already opened doors to new students.

The government announced that it had waived the Identification Card (I.D) requirement when applying for scholarships and loans to support their education.

Inyangala said, that only 83,922 had so far applied for loans and scholarships.

In May, the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) announced some 153,000 students had been placed in private and public universities.

This means some 69,078 students are yet to apply for student funding with only eight days to the close of the application process.

At the same time, Inyangala said that the ID requirement would be replaced with the student's former index number.

Students who are under 18 years old will also need a birth certificate attached to their application while those over the age of 18 will need proof of ID application.

PS Inyangala further said that the government will only support learners who will have applied for funding.

She said this while announcing that the ministry has extended the application deadline for 2023 KCSE students joining universities in the 2024-25 academic year by 10 days to August 15, 2024.

“The ministry of Education opened the application portal for scholarships and loans for the 2023 KCSE cohort on June 18, 2024. Since then, the process of applying for scholarships and loans has been ongoing,” she said.

The government had indicated last month that by the beginning of August 5, 2024, the respective universities would communicate the new fees structure.

This week, the government has extended the application deadline for funding by KCSE students joining universities in the 2024-25 academic year.

The new deadline is now set for August 15.

“Under the New Funding Model, government funding will be allocated based on individual student need," she said.

She also revealed that parents and guardians will be informed of the university fees/household contribution towards the cost of university programmes starting from August 19.

The Ministry of Education opened the application portal for scholarships and loans for the 2023 KCSE cohort on June 18, 2024 and the process has been ongoing.

PS Inyangala further said that the government will only support learners who will have applied for funding.

She said this while announcing that the ministry has extended the application deadline for 2023 KCSE students joining universities in the 2024-25 academic year by 10 days to August 15, 2024.

“The ministry of Education opened the application portal for scholarships and loans for the 2023 KCSE cohort on June 18, 2024. Since then, the process of applying for scholarships and loans has been ongoing,” she said.

The government had indicated last month that by the beginning of August 5, 2024, the respective universities would communicate the new fees structure.

On Monday, the government extended the application deadline for funding by KCSE students joining universities in the 2024-25 academic year.

The new deadline is now set for August 15.

“Under the New Funding Model, government funding will be allocated based on individual student need," she said.

She also revealed that parents and guardians will be informed of the university fees/household contribution towards the cost of university programmes starting from August 19.

The Ministry of Education opened the application portal for scholarships and loans for the 2023 KCSE cohort on June 18, 2024 and the process has been ongoing.