A student making a scholarship application. /AI ILLUSTRATION
The Universities Fund has invited students placed in degree programmes at public universities by the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) to apply for government scholarships for the 2026-27 academic year.
Universities Fund Acting CEO Edwin Wanyonyi said applications for scholarships should be submitted through the Higher Education Financing (HEF) Portal at www.hef.co.ke.
Applications for Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) loans under the Student-Centred Funding Model should also be submitted through the same portal.
The scholarship application portal opened on July 8, 2026, and will remain open until September 6, 2026.
Applications for both scholarships and HELB loans are free of charge and are submitted once every academic year.
Under the Student-Centred Funding Model, students placed in public universities are eligible for both Universities Fund scholarships and HELB loans, while those admitted to private universities qualify only for HELB loans.
The level of financial support awarded is determined by a student's household financial need using the Means Testing Instrument (MTI), and the cost of their degree programme.
The invitation comes days after KUCCPS released the 2026-27 placement results, paving the way for successful applicants to seek government financial support.
For the 2026-27 academic year, KUCCPS placed 202,133 students in degree programmes out of a total of 293,869 students placed across degree programmes, Level 6 diploma courses, Level 5 craft certificate courses and Level 4 artisan certificate programmes in universities and other tertiary institutions.
While releasing the placement results at the Edge Convention Centre, College of Insurance in South C, Nairobi, on July 8, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba said 8,915 students who qualified for degree programmes had opted to pursue non-degree courses.
"We encourage public university students to apply for the Universities Fund scholarships as early as possible to facilitate the timely processing, award and disbursement of financial support ahead of the commencement of their studies," Wanyonyi said.
The government has allocated Sh30.8 billion to the Universities Fund to finance scholarships for public university students in the 2026-27 financial year.
The allocation is Sh12.4 billion higher than the Sh18.4 billion provided in the 2025-26 financial year.
Scholarship funds are disbursed directly to public universities to cover students' tuition fees.
Wanyonyi urged students to ensure that all information provided during the application process is accurate and complete to facilitate timely processing.
"I encourage parents, guardians and sponsors to support students throughout the application process and ensure they have all the necessary documents ready in advance to enable them to complete their applications on time," he said.
To qualify for a Universities Fund scholarship, applicants must be Kenyan citizens who have been placed in a public university by KUCCPS, sat the KCSE examination in 2022 or later, and submitted their application through the HEF Portal at www.hef.co.ke.
Students may also apply through the USSD code *642# using the mobile number registered on the HEF Portal.
First-time applicants are required to have a valid email address, a valid mobile phone number registered in their name, KCPE and KCSE index numbers and years of examination, a recent passport-size photograph, a university admission letter, a birth certificate or national identity card, the parent or guardian's registered mobile phone number and national identity card number and, where applicable, a parent's death certificate.
Wanyonyi said the Fund has also launched a nationwide public awareness campaign dubbed #WahiScholarship to encourage eligible students to apply for government scholarships through the HEF Portal.
The campaign aims to raise awareness of the application process, eligibility requirements and key deadlines to ensure that no deserving student misses out on financial support due to a lack of information.
More than 400,000 students have benefited from government scholarships through the Universities Fund since the introduction of the Student-Centred Funding Model in 2023.
The first cohort of students admitted under the Student-Centred Funding Model is expected to graduate next year, marking the first full cycle of the government's new higher education financing system.
