The Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) has opened its portal for application for TVET courses targeting 12,705 students to be enrolled under the Competency Based Curriculum beginning January 2024.
It follows Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu’s recent directive to all public Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions to adopt the new curriculum with immediate effect.
In a circular to principals of the institutions, Machogu noted that the government had established necessary legal and regulatory framework including enhancement of TVET infrastructure across the country.
“All Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions (should) embark on the implementation of the Competency Based Education and Training (CBET) without further delay,” Machogu said in the circular dated October 5, 2023.
Consequently, KUCCPS opened the application portal on December 21, 2023 after 190 TVET institutions declared 12,705 vacancies in various CBET programmes for the January 2024 admissions.
The portal will close on January 2, 2024.
“One of the advantages of CBET courses is that a trainee can progress from one level to another based on experiential learning or skills gained while working in relevant industry,” says KUCCPS CEO Dr. Agnes Mercy Wahome.
The students who enrol for the CBET courses will be assessed by the TVET Curriculum Development, Assessment and Certification Council (CDACC).
CBET courses are designed to equip trainees with practical skills through hands-on experiential training that emphasises the ability to perform specific practical tasks (competencies) as opposed to a largely theoretical learning.
This is also in tune with the new Kenya National Qualifications Framework, which outlines various levels of learning and provides a pathway for progression from one level to another. For instance, Artisan Certificate courses are at Level 4 in the qualification framework, Craft Certificate Programmes are at level 5 and Diploma courses are at Level 6.