Fate of 118 JKUAT PhDs hangs in the balance as CUE cracks whip

The Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (Jkuat) has been directed to cease training doctorate students in satellite campuses for lack of capacity and transfer them to the main institution in Juja.

The university is also expected to submit to the Commission for University Education (CUE) evidence of students’ publication of two articles for each PhD awarded since publication of Universities Standards and Guidelines, 2014, failure to which non-conforming ones will be recalled until graduation requirements are fulfilled.

-Review awards-

Consequently, Jkuat’s Senate is expected to meet to review the 118 PhD awarded during the 33rd graduation ceremony held in June, make decisions on some of the issues the commission has raised and report back within three months.

The commission issued the diThe Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (Jkuat) has been directed to cease training doctorate students in satellite campuses for lack of capacity and transfer them to the main institution in Juja.

The university is also expected to submit to the Commission for University Education (CUE) evidence of students’ publication of two articles for each PhD awarded since publication of Universities Standards and Guidelines, 2014, failure to which non-conforming ones will be recalled until graduation requirements are fulfilled.

-Review awards-

Consequently, Jkuat’s Senate is expected to meet to review the 118 PhD awarded during the 33rd graduation ceremony held in June, make decisions on some of the issues the commission has raised and report

-Back within three months-

The commission issued the di normal range.  It also emerged that most of the students published in journals in which a number of academic staff of College of Human Resource Development (CoHRED) had interests.

-Audit panel-

The Commission’s Audit Panel carried out the Regular Institutional Quality Audit of Jkuat between July 23 and 27 last year flagged out an issue on supervision of PhDs in CoHRED.

CUE further stated that although Jkuat has an admission procedure clearly stipulated in the University Statutes duly approved by the Council, which the university adheres to, there were instances where students admitted for PhD did not have relevant academic Bachelor’s degree for admission into Master’s programme.

“Though, some students may have graduated with a Master’s degree from a different institution it is incumbent upon the institution admitting the student for PhD to confirm adherence to standards,” read the CUE report.

The report has also shown out of the 118 PhD graduates of the 33rd Graduation, 112 were approved by Senate however, the remaining six were administratively approved for graduation by the Vice Chancellor on behalf of Senate.