Why Grade 10 Transfer Applications Are Being Rejected and the Next Steps for Students

Thousands of learners moving to Grade 10 have faced disappointment after the Ministry of Education rejected a large number of school transfer requests. According to the Ministry, more than 60,000 students who sat the 2025 Kenya Junior Secondary Education Assessment (KJSEA) were unable to secure transfers to their preferred senior schools.

Main Reason Behind the Rejections

The Ministry of Education has explained that the biggest challenge is limited school capacity. Many students applied to join a small group of highly ranked national and extra-county schools. However, these schools are very few, 20 across the country, and cannot accommodate the huge number of applicants.

Education Principal Secretary Julius Bitok noted that over 50,000 learners targeted the same top schools, making it impossible for all transfer requests to be approved.

How Grade 10 Placement Was Done

The Grade 10 placement process was fully automated. The system considered several factors, including:

Student performance in KJSEA
School choices selected by learners
Psychometric test results
Equity and regional balance
Available space in each school

Out of about 183,000 transfer requests reviewed, more than 116,000 were approved, while around 66,000 were declined.

What Affected Students Should Do Next

Students whose transfer requests were rejected have not been locked out completely. The Ministry has advised them to submit fresh appeals in early January. During this period, learners may be considered for alternative schools that still have available spaces.

The Ministry also revealed that some schools in certain regions have low enrollment, and efforts are being made to redirect students to these institutions. A second revision window is expected to open between January 6 and January 9 to help balance student distribution.

Admission Letters and Reporting Dates

Learners whose transfers were approved can download their admission letters from the Ministry’s portal starting December 28. All Grade 10 students are expected to report to their assigned senior secondary schools on January 12.

In total, over 1.13 million learners sat for the 2025 KJSEA examination. Boys accounted for about 578,000 candidates, while girls were approximately 552,000. The Ministry has confirmed that top-performing students in STEM, social sciences, and arts tracks were given priority, especially for boarding schools.

Final Advice to Parents and Students

Parents and learners are encouraged to remain flexible when choosing schools and to consider institutions beyond the highly competitive national schools. The Ministry insists that all approved senior schools meet the required education standards and can offer quality learning opportunities.