Effects Of County Bursary On Completion Rates Among University Students In Kwale County, Kenya Between Academic Years 2014/15 To 2017/18

Access to higher education world over has been a preserve of the affluent few since they can cater for the costs of the education. Majority of the developing countries in Africa are yet to address the issue of subsidizing higher education to enhance completion rates. The general objective of this study was to determine the effects of County bursary on the completion rates of university students in Kwale County. Therefore, the study focused towards attaining the following specific objectives:-determine the criteria used to admit students into the county bursary scheme among university students in Kwale County; determine the effects of the disbursement procedure on completion rates among university students in Kwale County; determine the extent to which communication on the bursary scheme to the community enhances completion rates among university students in Kwale County; and finally assess the extent to which adequacy of the bursary funds enhances completion rates among university students in Kwale County. The study was guided by the human capital theory, and theory of justice as fairness. The study adopted a descriptive study design. This approach was designed to depict the participants’ behavior in an accurate way in their natural settings. The design also allowed the researcher to observe the research subjects of the study without manipulating the variables. The target population comprised 165 students from Kwale County admitted to recognized Kenyan Universities through the KUCCPS in the academic year 2014/15.The researcher used simple random sampling to select the desired sample size. Data was analyzed using SPSS. The analysis comprised of descriptive statistics such as means, percentages and frequencies. Inferential statistics included T-test and Chi-square. Significance level was determined at 95% confidence level and a precision value of < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Qualitative data was subjected to framework analysis and presented as themes consistent with the research objectives. The study findings established a positive correlation between bursary and completion rates among university students.