- The Open University of Kenya seeks to admit its first cohort of about 7,100 students in September 2023 into eight programmes.
- The two postgraduate programmes offered are Leadership and Accountability and Learning Design and Technology.
Image: THEURI KIBICHO
Last week Members of Parliament led by Emuhaya MP Omboko Milemba approved the draft charter for the Open University of Kenya allowing the establishment of the first fully-fledged virtual university in Kenya.
The institution will aim to provide opportunities and skills to the youth, elderly, Persons with Disabilities, minorities and marginalised groups by adopting an Open and Distance e-learning approach which boasts flexible learning modes.
Programmes offered
The Open University of Kenya seeks to admit its first cohort of about 7,100 students in September 2023 into eight programmes; six Bachelor programmes and two postgraduate programmes.
The bachelor flagship programmes include; Bachelor of Data Science, Bachelor of Science in Cyber and Digital Forensics, Bachelor of Technology Education, Bachelor of Entrepreneurship and Business, Bachelor of Economics and Statistics, and Bachelor of Agri-Technology and Food Systems.
The two postgraduate programmes offered are Leadership and Accountability and Learning Design and Technology.
Location of the university
According to a report on the Consideration of the Draft Charter for the Establishment of the OUK, the university will be located at Konza Technopolis while its virtual presence will be supported by a Learning Management System with both physical and cloud servers.
“Currently the seat is currently being hosted at the National Commission for Science, Technology and Innovation (NACOSTI) headquarters on a temporary basis,” the report reads.
Cost of programmes
For affordability purposes, the committee proposed that degree students pay between Sh10,400 and Sh10,900 per module while post-graduate diploma courses cost Sh130,000 per year.
A full-time student will be expected to take between four and six modules.
"The cost per module is Sh10,400 for the Bachelor of Data Science, Bachelor of Economics and Statistics, Bachelor of Science in Business and Entrepreneurship, Bachelor of Technology Education and Bachelor of Cyber Security and Digital Forensics,” the committee said.
"For the two post-diploma courses, Diploma in Learning Design and Technology and Postgraduate Diploma in Leadership and Accountability offered in the first year, the projected fee per year is Sh130,000.”
Budget
The Prof Ezra Maritim chaired-committee further proposed a budget of Sh1.8 billion for the first year of operation of the OUK.
This, they said, was to meet the bulk of the initial costs towards establishing physical facilities, teaching materials and learner support services.
They further defended the sum saying that if the budget was to be funded from students’ tuition fees each of the students would pay Sh156,582 during the first financial year.
“If this budget were to be funded entirely from student fees, each of the 7,100 students proposed for the first intake would have to pay Sh156,582 for that financial year, assuming that the development costs are amortised over a five-year period,” the report reads.
Award of Charter
The Commission for University of Education (CUE) in a letter dated June 7, approved the recommendations for the award of Charter for the OUK by President William Ruto.
“The Commission in its deliberations appreciated the uniqueness of the proposed Open University of Kenya, being the first university to be established without being mentored by an existing university hence lack of a governing organ to incur expenses,” the letter read.
Another letter dated May 4, 2023, by the Secretary to the Cabinet Mercy Wanjau, shows that the Cabinet approved the establishment of the Open University of Kenya noting that the proposed university is of strategic national importance.