2025 Term 3 School Dates, Holidays, and Exam Schedule

 Candidates from St Anne's Girls High School, Lioki, in Kiambu County sit for KCSE papers on November 6, 2023.
Candidates from St Anne's Girls High School, Lioki, in Kiambu County sit for KCSE papers on November 6, 2023.
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KNEC

The Ministry of Education has released the updated academic calendar for Term 3 as students prepare to return to school for the final term of the 2025 school calendar year.

Issued by the Office of the Principal Secretary of Basic Education, the calendar covers a range of dates for learning institutions, including the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA), Kenya Intermediate Level Education Assessment (KILEA), Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA), and the Kenya Pre-vocational Level Education Assessment (KPLEA).

The third term for basic education commenced on Monday, August 25, 2025, and will run until Friday, October 24, 2025, amounting to a total of nine weeks of learning. Notably, this is the shortest academic term of the year, but it is arguably the most important, as it is the term when candidates sit for their national assessments.

With this in mind, schools are expected to adhere strictly to the dates to ensure consistency in learning and countrywide assessment.

exams boys
KCSE candidates in an examination hall.

Two holidays fall within the Term 3 bracket. These include Mazingira Day, which will be observed on Friday, October 10, and Mashujaa Day, which falls on Monday, October 20, 2025. Interestingly, the two holidays fall on weekdays, giving learners a pair of three-day breaks during the third term.

National Examination Schedule (KNEC Assessments)

The Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) is scheduled to take place from October 27 to October 30. The four-day examination is meant for Grade 6 learners and is part of the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC). 

The Kenya Intermediate Level Education Assessment (KILEA), which targets learners with special needs at the intermediate level, will run from October 27 to October 31.

Elsewhere, the Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA) and the Kenya Pre-Vocational Level Education Assessment (KPLEA) will be conducted over a nine-day period, starting on October 27 and concluding on November 6. These exams are particularly critical in measuring the progress of learners under the CBC, to guide their transitions to the next grades.

For secondary schools, the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations, involving Form Four candidates, will begin on November 3 and end on November 21, running for three weeks (18 days).

Secondary Schools & Holidays Overview

The December holiday for basic education will see learners begin their long break from October 27. The holiday will extend until January 2, 2026, marking a 10-week break.

In line with previous Ministry directives, Term 3 remains a restricted period for school activities, meaning all non-essential activities and visits to secondary schools are banned throughout the term.

This restriction aims to provide a focused learning environment for candidates and to avoid any disruptions during the crucial examination period.

2022 KCSE Students
An invigilator distributes papers to Starehe Boys' Centre students sitting KCSE exams in 2021.
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Ministry of Education