The Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) has officially concluded the university course application process.
In a statement, the service indicated that the portal was closed after reaching the deadline for applications, which was scheduled for March 4.
However, the application process, whose deadline was extended on two separate occasions, presented several challenges to students, some of whom were unable to complete their applications.
In response, KUCCPS has pledged to reopen the portal during the first revision of choices, providing students with an opportunity to make their selections.
"The KUCCPS application portal has closed. Another opportunity to apply is coming up, during the first revision of choices," read the statement in part.
Whereas the agency failed to give the applicants exact dates for revision, it promised to keep updating them on when the portal will be reopened.
The portal was initially opened to the public on February 8 this year and was initially expected to remain open until February 22. However, challenges with selection and payment prompted KUCCPS to extend the deadline to February 26.
Subsequently, the issues persisted, forcing Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu to order another extension until March 4.
Parents and students affected by the hitches complained that the application process was majorly affected by the delay in processing payments.
“Error: Please wait for the payment to reflect to complete the application,” the site read after payment was done, halting the process temporarily," one user complained.
“But this extension will be useless if the system does not improve, imagine trying to apply one application for the last few days without success,” the user added.
While acknowledging the delay, Machogu noted that the Ministry was aware of the complaints hence the call for extension.
"The Ministry has taken note of the challenges that some students have faced in the ongoing application process," he stated.
While it is not clear how many students made the applications, KUCCPS was expecting a volume of around 171,738 applications which is 86% of the number of candidates who scored a C+ and above in the 2023 Kenya Certificate of Secondary examination, based on the patterns shown by 2022 applicants.
