HELB has announced the funds it will allocate to university students under the new government funding model, revealing how much they will get per course each year.
In a public notice, HELB stated that the release of funds will be based on the categories each student falls under.
For example, the loan organization will provide Ksh85,680 in scholarships for a Bachelor of Arts degree programme, which costs Ksh122,400 annually.
Additionally, Ksh30,600 will be allocated to loan payments for this of students (Band 1), as parents or guardians having to contribute Ksh6,120 annually. The student will receive an annual upkeep allowance of Ksh60,000.
For students in Bands 2 to 5, HELB will provide tuition loans of Ksh36,720 per band. Parents will need to contribute Ksh12,240, Ksh24,480, Ksh36,720, and Ksh48,960 respectively for each category.
For Bachelor of Education Science, which costs Ksh244,800 per year, parents in Band 1 will pay Ksh12,240, whereas those in Band 5 will pay Ksh97,920.
Bachelor of Commerce students in Band 1 will pay Ksh11,008 in household contributions, whereas those in Band 5 will pay Ksh88,060.
For course programmes such as Medicine, which has an annual fee of Ksh612,000, parents of students in Band 1 will pay Ksh30,600 while those in Band 5 will pay Ksh244,800.
The new funding model introduced by the government in May 2023 aims to provide free education to universities and college students facing financial difficulties.
In this model, students are classified into four categories: vulnerable, extremely needy, needy, and less needy. Students in the vulnerable and extremely needy categories will receive full funding at 100 per cent, while those in the needy and less needy categories will receive 93 per cent funding.
Since the application portal for loans and scholarships was opened for the 2023 cohort, only 79,038 students have applied for both loans and scholarships. 74,237 have not yet applied for funding.
The application window closed today, Thursday, August 15.
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By Frank Mugwe
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