NAIROBI, Kenya — The Ministry of Education has approved 211,636 applications for review of Grade 10 senior school placement out of a total of 355,457 requests submitted by learners countrywide following the release of placement results.
In a statement issued on December 30, 2025, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Migos Ogamba said the approvals mean that about 88pc of learners have now been placed in line with their original or revised choices under the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) transition to senior school.
Ogamba said applications that were not approved were largely rejected due to structural limitations within schools, including unavailable subject combinations and inadequate capacity in the institutions selected by applicants.
“The other applications have been declined largely due to the absence of the preferred subject combinations or the lack of capacity in the selected schools, and the learners have been advised accordingly,” Ogamba said.
The Cabinet Secretary noted that demand for a small number of highly sought-after national schools significantly exceeded available spaces, complicating the review process.
Schools such as Alliance High School, Kenya High School, and Mang’u High School each received up to 20,000 applications, despite having an average capacity of about 500 slots.
The ministry, however, said learners who remain dissatisfied with their placement will be given a second opportunity to seek reconsideration.
Ogamba announced that a fresh review window will be open from January 6 to January 9, 2026, allowing parents and learners to submit new applications through the Kenya Education Management Information System (KEMIS) placement portal, subject to space availability.
The Grade 10 placement exercise is part of the rollout of senior secondary education under the CBC, which introduces specialised learning pathways at the senior school level.
According to the ministry, the initial placement of learners began on December 14, 2025, and concluded on December 19, 2025, when the results were officially released.
Learners who were unhappy with their initial placement were allowed to apply for a review from December 23, 2025.
The ministry said processing of those applications was completed on December 29, 2025, with each learner permitted to submit up to four review requests.
Results of the review exercise are now accessible on the placement portal, alongside updated school allocations for successful applicants.
On pathway distribution, the ministry said the majority of learners were placed in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) pathway, which absorbed 51 per cent of the cohort.
Another 38 per cent were placed in the Social Sciences pathway, while 11 per cent joined the Arts and Sports Science pathway.
Education officials say the distribution reflects both learner preferences and national priorities, particularly the government’s push to strengthen science and technology skills as part of Kenya’s long-term development agenda.
The ministry further announced that joining instructions for all placed learners are available for download on the placement portal effective December 30, 2025, ahead of the reporting date.
All learners are expected to report to their respective senior schools from January 12, 2026, marking a key milestone in Kenya’s education reforms.
Ogamba urged parents and guardians to familiarise themselves with placement details and to seek assistance from school heads or ministry support teams where challenges persist, warning that the placement timelines will be strictly observed.
