The Ministry of Education has announced that parents will pay senior school fees based on the learning pathways chosen by Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA) Grade 9 learners under the Competency-Based Education System (CBE).

Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok, who oversaw the start of the 2025 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams in Westlands on Monday, November 3, said the three pathways: STEM, Social Sciences, and Arts and Sports, will have slight fee variations to cater to their different learning requirements.

Senior School Fees To Be Charged Based on the Students’ Pathway

Bitok was responding to an inquiry as to whether parents will still use the same fee rules used in present secondary schools or if they should anticipate new ones in senior schools.

“We are not expecting any significant difference in terms of fees.

There could be marginal differences because of the introduction of pathways, but I want to assure parents that any adjustments in school fees are based on the pathways,” he said.

“As you are aware, we have three pathways: STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), Social Sciences, and Arts and Sports. Each of these has different fee guidelines.”

Bitok assured parents that the overall cost will be more or less as it is in current secondary schools, with only a few adjustments guided by the recommendations of the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform.

“Overall, there’s very little difference between the fees for secondary schools and senior schools.

I want to assure parents that there is not much change; the adjustments are minimal and are based on the recommendations of the Presidential Working Party on Education Reform,” he said.

“That remains our baseline for any minor fee adjustments.”

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Marking, Release, and Placement of KJSEA Learners.

Meanwhile, Bitok announced that the commencement of marking of the KJSEA will begin immediately, with results expected by December 11, as the preparations for the transition to senior school enter the final phase.

According to the PS, all the arrangements have been made to ensure marking begins as soon as the exams are over.

“Most of the KJSEA marking will be done electronically and completed expeditiously, within about 40 days, so that the placement can take place in mid-December.

Students will then report to senior school in early January,” he said.

We have also set up a digital system to support this transition. All learners are expected to get a spot in senior school.

The number of learners who are doing KJSEA is 1.12 million, and there are 2.4 million spaces in the senior schools. Every learner will get a chance.”

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No Certificates for KJSEA Candidates

Certificates will not be issued to the students who are sitting for KJSEA,as was the case with the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE), which has since been phased out.

Instead, they will be given result slips, whereby they will know their performance in each subject.

The KJSEA is aimed at assessing the skills of learners in different subjects, such as English, Kiswahili, Mathematics, Integrated Science, Social Studies, Religious Education, Agriculture, Pre-Technical Studies, Creative Arts, and Physical Education.

KJSEA scores will be regarded as 60 percent of the overall score of the learners, and the other 40 percent will be rated through classroom tests administered in Grade 7 and Grade 8.

The schools have been classified into four clusters: Cluster 1 (which used to be the national schools), Cluster 2 (extra-county schools), Cluster 3 (county schools), and Cluster 4 (day schools).

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PS Education Julius Bitok
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