The Universities Fund has called on all 202,133 students placed in public universities for the 2026/2027 academic year to apply for government scholarships without delay, as the application window edges closer to its September deadline.
Acting Chief Executive Officer Dr Edwin Wanyonyi said students admitted through the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) should submit their applications through the Higher Education Financing (HEF) Portal at www.hef.co.ke. The portal opened on July 8, 2026, and will close on September 6, 2026.
Wanyonyi urged students not to wait until the last minute. “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,” he said.
The government has set aside KSh30.8 billion for the Universities Fund in the current financial year, a jump of KSh12.4 billion from the KSh18.4 billion allocated the previous year. The funds go directly to public universities to cover tuition, meaning students never handle the money themselves.
Under the Student-Centred Funding Model, only students placed in public universities qualify for both a Universities Fund scholarship and a HELB loan. Those admitted to private universities can only apply for HELB loans. How much support a student receives depends on their household’s financial need, assessed through the Means Testing Instrument, and the cost of their specific degree programme.
To qualify, applicants must be Kenyan citizens placed in a public university by KUCCPS, must have sat KCSE in 2022 or later, and must apply through the HEF Portal or via the USSD code *642#. First-time applicants need a valid email address, a phone number registered in their own name, KCPE and KCSE index numbers, a passport photo, their admission letter, a birth certificate or national ID, and their parent or guardian’s ID and phone number.
The scholarship drive follows KUCCPS’s release of the 2026-27 placement results, in which 293,869 students were placed across degree, diploma, craft and artisan programmes, with 202,133 securing degree slots.
Since the funding model launched in 2023, more than 400,000 students have benefited from government scholarships. The Fund has also rolled out a nationwide #WahiScholarship campaign urging parents and guardians to help students gather documents early to avoid missing the deadline.
