Kenyatta University (KU) is a public

research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are the most important sites at which knowledge production occurs, along with "intergenerational kn ...

with its main campus in Nairobi County,

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

. It acquired the status of university in 1985, being the third university after

University of Nairobi The University of Nairobi (uonbi or UoN; ) is a collegiate research university based in Nairobi. It is the largest university in Kenya. Although its history as an educational institution dates back to 1956, it did not become an independent univer ...

(1970) and

Moi University Moi University is a public university located in Kesses, Eldoret town, Uasin Gishu county, in the former Rift Valley Province of Kenya. It was established in 1984 by the Moi University Act of the Parliament of Kenya, after recommendations fro ...

(1984). As of October 2014, it was one of 23 public universities in the country.

Location

The main campus of Kenyatta University sits on over , at

Kahawa Kahawa is a suburb settlement spanning the Kiambu County and Nairobi County borders along Thika Road. It is administratively divided into four wards across the two counties: Kahawa and Kahawa West wards in Nairobi county and Kahawa Wendani and Kah ...

, in the Kasarani Sub-county, north of Nairobi City County, approximately , by road, northeast of the

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...

Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ...

, the capital city of Kenya, off of the Nairobi-Thika Road. The list of KU campuses includes the following locations: # Main Campus -

# Ruiru Campus - Ruiru # Parkland Campus - Parklands # Kitui Campus -

Kwa Vonza Kwa Vonza is a highly populated market town in Kitui County, Kenya to the west of Kitui town, along Kitui - Machakos road. It houses the main campus of South Eastern Kenya University and a campus of Kenyatta University (Kitui Campus). History ...

# Mombasa Campus -

Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of the British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital city status. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town ...

# City Centre Campus - Nairobi Central Business District # Nyeri Campus -

Nyeri Nyeri is a town situated in the Central Highlands of Kenya. It is the county headquarters of Nyeri County. The town was the central administrative headquarters of the country's former Central Province. Following the dissolution of the former pr ...

# Nakuru Campus -

Nakuru Nakuru is a city in the Rift Valley region of Kenya. It is the capital of Nakuru County, and was formerly the capital of Rift Valley Province. As of 2019, Nakuru had an urban and rural population of 570,674 inhabitants, making it the largest ...

# Kericho Campus -

Kericho Kericho is the biggest town in Kericho County located in the highlands west of the Kenyan Rift Valley. Standing on the edge of the Mau Forest, Kericho has a warm and temperate climate making it an ideal location for agriculture and in partic ...

- Closed # Dadaab Campus -

Dadaab Dadaab ( so, Dhadhaab) is a semi-arid town in Garissa County, Kenya. It is the site of a UNHCR base hosting 223,420 registered refugees and asylum seekers in three camps (Dagahaley, Hagadera and Ifo) as of 13 May 2019, making it the third-larges ...

# Embu Campus -

Embu Embu may refer to: Places ; in Brazil * Embu das Artes * Embu-Guaçu ; in Kenya * Embu, Kenya * Embu County Other *Embu people of Kenya *Embu language Embu, also known as Kîembu, is a Bantu language of Kenya. It is spoken by the Embu peopl ...

The Arusha and Kigali campuses in Tanzania and Rwanda respectively were closed in 2018.

History

In 1965, the British government handed over the Templar Barracks in Kahawa, to the newly formed government of Kenya. The barracks were then converted into a college called Kenyatta College. In 1970, Kenyatta College became a constituent college of the

, and its name changed to Kenyatta University College, following an Act of Parliament. In 1985, it was granted full university status and was renamed Kenyatta University. U.S. President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

, whose late father,

Barack Obama, Sr. Barack Hussein Obama Sr. (; 18 June 1934 – 24 November 1982) was a Kenyan senior governmental economist and the father of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States. He is a central figure of his son's memoir, '' Dreams from My Fa ...

(an economist) and paternal relatives are from Kenya, visited Kenya in 2015; while there, he visited the university's main campus.

Academics

As of March 2016, the university has 12 campuses offering bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and doctoral degrees. The degrees awarded include those in medicine and law. The university has open-learning, e-learning which is known as the digital school, school-based, part-time and full-time teaching. Kenyatta University is accredited by the Kenya Commission of University Education, the Inter-University Council for East Africa, the Africa Association of Universities, the International Association of Universities and the Commonwealth Universities.

Library

Kenyatta University's library is one of the largest in Africa and offers, scholarly information resources and services to its students and researchers. In addition to lending services, the library offers E-services and has branches in the respective satellite campuses.

Schools and institutes

, the university maintains the following schools:

Institutes and centers

The university hosts institutes and centers such as; # Confucius Institute at Kenyatta University # Africa Centre for Transformative and Inclusive Leadership (ACTIL) # Chandaria Business Innovations and Incubation Centre (CBIIC) # Center for Refugee Studies and Empowerment # Cisco Networking Academy # Centre for Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development # Center for International Programmes and Collaboration (CIPC) # Centre for Gender Equity & Empowerment # National Phytotherapeutics Research Centre

Degrees and courses

The following courses are offered by the university and accredited by th
Commission for University Education
in Kenya (CUE) Doctorates and PhD - 14 Master's degree - 94 Bachelor's degree - 117 Postgraduates Diploma - 12

Student life

International students

The Centre for International Programmes and Collaboration is a unit under the office of the Vice Chancellor, responsible for coordinating international activities, collaborations and linkages.

Athletics

Kenyatta University partnered with

IAAF World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body fo ...

as an athletics-village in the 2017 world under 18 championship Nairobi. The athletes were hosted in the Nyayo hostels and used the campus facilities for training. Kenyatta University offers the following disciplines:

Men's sports

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

, rugby, hockey,

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

, netball,

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball cov ...

, table tennis, squash,

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players p ...

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to dist ...

, scrabble, darts, boxing, bodybuilding,

taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean martial arts, Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast k ...

, swimming, athletics (track and field), scrabble, karate, Roll Ball, woodball, judo, wrestling, Goalball,

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

, softball.

Women's sports

Football, rugby, hockey, volleyball, netball, handball, basketball, tennis, table tennis, squash, badminton, chess, scrabble, darts, boxing, fitness modelling, Taekwondo, swimming, athletics (track and field), Scrabble, Karate, Roll Ball, woodball, Judo, goalball, baseball, softball Seminars Short – term Courses in coaching, Sports management, training and Sports leadership are offered.

Sports facilities

Sports achievements

* 2012 - National Champions, Kenya University Women's Games * 2011 - National Champions, Kenya University Games * 2010 - 3rd Best University, East Africa University Games * 2009 - National Champions, Kenya University Games * 2006 - 6th Best University, East Africa University Games * 2004 - 2nd Best University, East Africa University Games

Alumni

The following individuals are some of the "prominent alumni" at the Kenyatta University website: . *

Mwai Kibaki Emilio Stanley Mwai Kibaki (15 November 1931 – 21 April 2022) was a Kenyan politician who served as the third President of Kenya from December 2002 until April 2013 and is regarded as one of Kenya's founding fathers. He had previously ser ...

- former

President of Kenya The president of the Republic of Kenya () is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Kenya. The President is also the head of the executive branch of the Government of Kenya and is the commander-in-chief of the Kenya Def ...

, 2002 to 2013 *

Kalonzo Musyoka Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka (born 24 December 195is a Kenyan politician who was the tenth Vice-President of Kenya from 2008 to 2013. Musyoka served in the government under the late President Daniel arap Moi and was Minister for Foreign Affairs ...

- former Vice president of Kenya *

Jakaya Kikwete Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete (born 7 October 1950) is a Tanzanian politician who was the fourth president of Tanzania, in office from 2005 to 2015. Prior to his election as president, he was the Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1995 to 2005 under hi ...

- President of the United Republic of Tanzania, 2005 to 2015 *

Daniel arap Moi Daniel Toroitich arap Moi ( ; 2 September 1924 – 4 February 2020) was a Kenyan politician who served as the second president of Kenya from 1978 to 2002. He was the country's longest-serving president. Moi previously served as the third vice ...

- former President of Kenya, 1978 to 2002 * Benjamin Mkapa - former President of Tanzania, 1995 to 2005 * Daudi Kabaka - musician and band leader of Kenyatta University Band. * Professor Joseph Maina Mungai - former Vice-Chancellor, University of Nairobi * Dr. Mostafa Tolba - former executive director of the

United Nations Environment Programme The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is responsible for coordinating responses to environmental issues within the United Nations system. It was established by Maurice Strong, its first director, after the United Nations Conference on ...

* Dr.

Geoffrey William Griffin Geoffrey William Griffin OBE (13 June 1933 in Eldoret – 28 June 2005) was the founding director of Starehe Boys' Centre and School in Kenya. He founded the center in November, 1959 with the help of Geoffrey Gatama Geturo and Joseph Kam ...

- founder director of Starehe Boys' Centre and School * Dr. James Mwangi - managing director and chief executive officer,

Equity Bank Group Equity Group Holdings Limited (EGHL), formerly Equity Bank Group, is a financial services holding company based in the African Great Lakes region. EGHL's headquarters are in Nairobi, Kenya, with subsidiaries in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, South Sud ...

* Dr. Eddah Gachukia - academic director, Riara Group of Schools * Esther Ngumbi – entomologist and winner of the 2018

Society for Experimental Biology The Society for Experimental Biology is a learned society for animal, cell and plant biologists. It was founded in 1923 at Birkbeck College to "promote the art and science of experimental biology in all its branches". It aims to demonstrate the im ...

Presidential Award * Professor Michael Bernard Kwesi - professor, Department of Geography, Kenyatta University * Professor John Mutio - former deputy vice chancellor for Academic Affairs, Kenyatta University *

Lawrence M. Mungai Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparat ...

- former registrar of Kenyatta University College * Professor James M. Waithaka - professor and deputy principal, Kenyatta University College * Phillip Ndegwa - founding chairman, Kenyatta University Council, 1985 to 1994 * Onesmo K. ole-MoiYoi - former chairman, Kenyatta University Council, 1994 to 2010 * Dr.

Harris Mule Harris may refer to: Places Canada * Harris, Ontario * Northland Pyrite Mine (also known as Harris Mine) * Harris, Saskatchewan * Rural Municipality of Harris No. 316, Saskatchewan Scotland * Harris, Outer Hebrides (sometimes called the Isle of ...

- former

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

of Kenyatta University

Notable staff and professors

* Prof

Mike Boit Michael (Mike) Kipsugut Boit (born 6 January 1949) is a Kenyan former professional middle-distance athlete whose career spanned fifteen years. He is a professor at Kenyatta University in the Department of Exercise and Sports Science. He is an unc ...

- sports science, former athlete. Received an honorary Doctorate of Science (DSc) from the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

in recognition of his contributions to the academic research of sports and its development in Kenya 2014 * Ambassador Joseph Magutt Kenya's ambassador to the Republic of Germany * Prof

Olive Mugenda Olive Mwihaki Mugenda is a Kenyan academic, researcher and academic administrator. She is currently the chairperson board of directors at the Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital, a leading national referral hospital. She ...

- former vice-chancellor (2009-2016), Board Chair KU hospital * Prof Ahmed Hasanali - professor (Chemical Ecology & Bioprospecting), ICIPE * Dr. Edward Waswa Kisiang'ani - historian, political analyst/scientist and strategist

Management

Kenyatta University Central Adminstration Parking Lot-The Junior Library and Education building can be seen in the background

The chancellor is Benson Wairegi. The

Vice Chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations, the chancellor ...

is Professor Waceke Wanjohi. He replaced Professor Paul Wainaina, who was suspended after a tussle with the government over the university's land. Professor Wainaina had succeeded Professor Olive Mugenda, the first female Vice Chancellor of a

public university A public university or public college is a university or college that is in owned by the state or receives significant public funds through a national or subnational government, as opposed to a private university. Whether a national universi ...

in Kenya, who retired after the end of her tenure in January 2016. There are four Deputy Vice Chancellors and four Registrars, to assist the Vice Chancellor carry out his mandate. The Deputy Vice Chancellors are: * DVC Academic Affairs: Professor John Okumu * DVC Administration: Professor Fatuma Chege * DVC Finance and Development: Professor Godfrey Mse * DVC Research, Innovation & Outreach: Professor F.Q Gravenir

Businesses and investments

The university owns and operates the following income-generating businesses and investments: # Kenyatta University Funeral Home # North Coast Beach Hotel -

# Uni-City Shopping Mall & Office Complex - Nairobi # Kenyatta University Conference Center - Nairobi (100 rooms) # Kenyatta University Bookstore - Nairobi # Television station KUTV # Kenyatta University Children's Hospital - Nairobi (Under construction) # Kenyatta University Dairy Farm - (In development) #

Kenyatta University Hospital Kenyatta University Hospital (Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral & Research Hospital (KUTRRH)) is a National Referral Hospital with a 650-bed capacity. The hospital is equipped to offer specialized Oncology, Trauma & Orthopedics, Renal, Acc ...

(KUH)

Gallery

References

External links

*
Machakos University College website

Pwani University college

More information about Colleges and Universities in Kenya

Leading Colleges and Universities in Kenya
{{authority control Universities and colleges in Kenya Education in Nairobi Education in Mombasa Educational institutions established in 1985 Jomo Kenyatta 1985 establishments in Kenya 1980s in Nairobi Kiambu County