The government through the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) sponsors students for different tertiary courses.
For students who scored C+ and above in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exam, the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS), places them in 545 undergraduate degree programs.
Those who score C plain and C-, are eligible to be sponsored for 217 diploma courses in public colleges and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions.
Students who attain D plain and D+, are eligible for 112 certificate courses while those who score below D plain are eligible for sponsorship in 145 artisan programs.
Kenyans.co.ke compiled a list of the 112 certificate courses that students with between D plain and D+ can apply for and get government funding.
The certificate courses are divided into programs which include; Business, Building and Construction, Engineering Technology, Health Sciences, Food Science, Nutrition and Dietetics, Social Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Applied Sciences, Information Technology (IT)
Other programs are; Hospitality, Hotel and Tourism, Clothing, Fashion and Textile, Agricultural Sciences, Natural Sciences, Graphics, Media Studies and Media Production, Technical courses, Tax and Customs Administration, Hair Dressing and Beauty Therapy, Library and Information Sciences, Law, Education and Animal Health.
Under Business Program, KUCCPS provides 21 certificate courses in; Accountancy, Accountancy and Management Skills, Banking, Banking and Finance, Business Administration, Secretarial Studies (4 options), Business Management, Computerized Secretarial Studies, Cooperative Management, Human Resource Management (2 options), Project Management, Sales and Marketing, Supply and Chain Management, Supplies Management and Supply Chain Management.
Under Building and Construction, the certificates offered include; Building and Construction Technology (2 options), Building Construction, Building Technology, Land Survey, Survey and Mapping, Masonry and Road Construction.
At the same time, KUCCPS offers the following certificates under Engineering Technology; Agricultural Engineering, Automotive Engineering, Mechanical Engineering (4 options), Electrical Engineering (2 options), Electrical and Electronic Engineering (4 options) and Electrical Instrumentation and Control.
In Food Sciences, students can study certificate in; Baking Technology, Food and Beverage Production, Food and Beverage, Food and Beverage Production Sales and Services, Food and Beverage Production Service (2 options), Food Science Technology and Food Processing Technology.
Under Nutrition and Dietetics, students can apply for Certificate in Nutrition and Dietetics.
In Social Sciences, the following certificate courses are available; Social Work, Social Work and Community Development and Community Development and Social Work.
In Applied Sciences, there are two certificate courses which are; Science Laboratory Technology and Science Laboratory Technician.
Under IT, you can apply for Information Communication Technology (ICT) – 6 options, IT and Computer Information Technology.
Certificates under Hospitality, Hotel and Tourism include; Catering and Accommodation, Tour Guide, Tourism Management (2 options), Tour Guiding and Operations and Tour Guiding and Travel.
Under Clothing, Fashion and Textile, students can study; Clothing Technology, Fashion and Design, Fashion Design and Garment Making and Fashion Design and Clothing.
In Agricultural Sciences, certificates available include; Tannery and Leather Technology, Agriculture, Agriculture and Community Development, Entrepreneurial Agriculture, General Agriculture and Sustainable Agriculture.
In Natural Sciences only Certificate in Petroleum Geoscience is available.
Under Technical Courses, the certificate courses available include; agricultural Engineering (2 options), Motor Vehicle Mechanic, Plumbing, Plumbing and Building Services, Plumbing and Water Services, Plumbing and Pipe Fitting, Plumbing Technology, Water Technology and Welding and Fabrication.
Hair Dressing and Beauty Therapy has a certificate course in Hairdressing and Beauty Therapy.
Library and Information Sciences has the following certificate programs; Information Science, Library and Information Science, Information Studies, Library Archival Studies and Library Information Studies.
Currently, KUCCPS does not have certificate courses in the following programs; Animal Health, Education, Law and Environmental Sciences.
In the 2022 KCSE test, 1,146 students scored Grade A (Plain) while 30,822 scored E. According to Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu, 173,345 students scored C+ and above, which was 14.03 per cent of the total candidates.
Those who scored D plus and D plain were 32 per cent of the total candidates comprising of 290,501 out of 881,416 students.
