The Kenyan University Culture: Part One

Every Kenyan university is distinctively identified by its culture. Culture simply entails the custom or belief of an institution or rather a society. It can be described in terms of lifestyle such as education, accommodation, entertainment, politics, among others. 

Campuses' culture as greatly evolved from era to era due to a number of factors. For instance, it is easier to identify a student from Strathmore University in the essence of dress code and the way of communication. 

Civilisation

Civilisation in a number of universities has greatly taken root in an acceptable manner. They have been advanced in terms of technology in that there is the use of Information Communication Technology in the lecture halls, in online booking sites and e-learning.   

A few numbers of campuses such as Kenyatta University and Moi University have adapted the use of projectors in classrooms, teleconferencing and online booking among other ICT programmes. In addition to that, education has excited scholars to involve themselves in activities that promote the growth of technology by coming up with new ideas and new ways to solve problems.

Students from different universities are exposed diversely. It is easier to identify a scholar of one university to the other since each is exposed uniquely. Take an example of a student from Strathmore University. She is exposed to different cultures of people from various parts of the world.

This diversity in culture can bring about another new culture as the students interact in their studies and co-curriculum activities. In the long run, it will affect the way they communicate and dress. At the end of the day, she marries the culture of the school. She will change her view of different things and develop a civilised way of thinking and decision making.

Politics

For the past years, varsities have been conducting elections for the student leaders' posts who can help the school administration run the school smoothly plus exercise the responsibilities of leadership since it is believed the future belongs to the young generation.

Universities offer a platform for the exercise of politics. This has built some individuals to be the best politicians in the government such as Hr. Hassan Omar, the Mombasa County Senator. He was once a student leader at Moi University.

Not until lately the trend in politics in these respected campuses is drastically retrograding. For instance, there have been cases of campuses being closely indefinitely due to the political issues mainly brought about by tribalism. Some of the Universities that have been involved in political indifferences are  Moi University, University of Eldoret, Laikipia University, Chuka University among others.

Tribalism 

For a number of years now, Kenya as a country has been fighting the threat of tribalism among her people. Tribalism which has been experienced in all sectors of the economy, society and in politics has brought about a rotten side of Kenyans. Kenyan universities have also faced the danger of tribalism. 

For instance, a university like Moi University has experienced some tribal hitches in politics. This greatly divides scholars politically; who are from different parts of the country in that a great population of one tribe in the institution tend to vote for their people only in the elections.

There is this ideology that has been noticed in campuses that some administrative posts can only be held by certain personnel from a specific tribe since that is their religion where the institution is located. 

Take an example of the University of Eldoret where students matched to oppose the manner in which the offices were handled. Most of the high posts in the campus were alleged to be controlled by the Kalenjins. 

This brought about inequality of representation in the administrative posts since the students are from all over the country which has forty-two tribes. Due to the uneasiness of the state, the main campus of this university was closed indefinitely closed.

..End of Part One...