It is one of the quiet ironies of modern education: rural students often outperform city students in completing high school, yet they remain significantly underrepresented in colleges and universities. In many countries – including Kenya – data shows that learners in rural settings demonstrate stronger persistence in basic education. They show up, they stay in school and they finish. But when the next academic door opens – the one that leads to university and post-secondary opportunities – they hesitate, step back or silently walk away.
Why does this paradox exist? Why would a student who successfully endures the long walks to school, the limited resources and the challenging learning environments suddenly stop at the very moment higher chances of mobility appear? Understanding this requires looking beyond academics and into the social, cultural and economic realities that shape rural life.
To begin with, rural communities tend to have a strong sense of duty and responsibility. Many young people grow up in families where the expectation is not only to study but also to contribute to the household. Completing high school is seen as an achievement that equips them with essential literacy, numeracy, and maturity to return home and help. For many, education is not an exit door but a strengthening tool for community life. When university comes calling—often far away, expensive and unfamiliar—it feels like abandoning the very people who nurtured them.
The distance itself is a major factor. Universities are often located in towns and cities, physically separating learners from the support systems they rely on. A rural student who has never left their village may find the city overwhelming, impersonal and financially intimidating. Concerns like accommodation, transport, food, and safety add layers of anxiety. Meanwhile, city students, already accustomed to urban life, transition without the same emotional and logistical shock.
Financial barriers are another major force behind this trend. While rural families may wholeheartedly value education, they often face limited income streams. A university degree requires fees, upkeep, technology, and other hidden expenses. Even with government support, bursaries, or loans, many feel the gap is still too wide. Worse, they fear accumulating debt without guaranteed employment. Rural parents tend to be cautious with money, and their children inherit the same mindset. The risk of investing heavily in higher education—especially in courses they may not fully understand—feels too high.
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There is also the issue of exposure. City students grow up surrounded by professionals, institutions, mentorship opportunities, and career conversations. They often have relatives or neighbours who work in corporate offices, hospitals, media houses, and government departments. University, therefore, is not an abstract idea; it is a natural next step. Rural students, however, may know very few degree holders personally. The pathways feel mysterious, the processes intimidating, and the journey alien. Without tangible role models, aspirations struggle to take shape.
Career guidance in rural schools also remains significantly underdeveloped. Many students choose subjects without understanding how they connect to future opportunities. They complete high school with little awareness of courses available, qualifications required, or the realities of university life. This lack of information turns potential into paralysis. Even those who qualify may delay or abandon the journey simply because no one has walked them through it.
Another crucial factor is the perception of the job market. Rural youth often witness unemployment even among university graduates. When someone with a degree comes back home and struggles to find a job, it sends a message that higher education may not guarantee success. In tight economies, this becomes a powerful deterrent. Practical skills, farming innovations, boda-boda business, small-scale entrepreneurship, or local opportunities feel more immediate and predictable than a four-year course whose outcome is uncertain.
Beyond the challenges, however, lies an opportunity for transformation. Rural students possess qualities that make them exceptionally strong candidates for higher learning: resilience, discipline, strong work ethic, and a grounded sense of identity. They know how to navigate hardship without giving up. They understand community, values, and responsibility. These traits are precisely what universities and modern workplaces crave.
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What they need is support—targeted, empathetic, and intentional.
Governments can expand scholarship programmes specifically for rural learners. Local leaders and alumni can establish mentorship networks. Schools can strengthen career guidance by connecting students with professionals, hosting career fairs, and integrating digital tools that expose learners to global opportunities. Universities, on their part, must make the transition friendlier – through outreach programs, rural recruitment, preparatory sessions and psychosocial support.
Parents and communities also play a key role. When families celebrate higher education not as a loss of their children but as an investment in the family’s future, students gain the courage to take the leap. When the community views a university graduate not as a stranger who left but as a changemaker who will return with new knowledge, the culture begins to shift.
Ultimately, the paradox of rural academic success and rural university hesitation is not a failure – it is a reflection of structural inequalities and deeply rooted social patterns. The potential is there. The determination is there. What is missing is a bridge.
And when that bridge is built, rural students will not just finish high school. They will walk confidently into universities, thrive there and return to transform the very communities that shaped them.
By Ashford Kimani
Ashford teaches English and Literature in Gatundu North Sub-county and serves as Dean of Studies.
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