The clock is ticking for Grade 9 learners seeking to pursue science, technology, engineering and mathematics in senior school, with only a few days left to choose their Grade 10 pathway, subjects and preferred institutions.
The Ministry of Education opened the Grade 10 selection process on August 24, 2026, giving learners until September 11 to make their choices through the Selection and Placement System.
The exercise marks the first transition to Grade 10 under the new system and requires each learner to identify a preferred pathway, three elective subjects and senior schools where they would like to continue their education.
However, submitting the choices does not mean a learner has secured a place in the selected school.
The Ministry will begin the placement process after the selection window closes, taking into account the choices made by learners, the number of available spaces in schools and the subject combinations offered by each institution.
There is no charge for making the selections.
For families interested in STEM, the choice of school requires careful attention because not every institution offers the same combination of subjects. Parents need to first establish the subjects their child wants to pursue and then identify schools that provide those options.
How STEM choices are structured
STEM is among the three pathways available to learners entering senior school. The other two are Social Sciences and Arts and Sports Science.
The pathway has attracted considerable attention after about 59 per cent of candidates who sat the Kenya Junior Secondary Education Assessment were found to have potential for STEM.
The area covers studies connected to science, technology, engineering and mathematics, giving learners a range of subject choices linked to these fields.
At senior school, learners will study seven subjects.
Four subjects are compulsory for all learners. They are English, Kiswahili or Kenyan Sign Language, Mathematics and Community Service Learning.
Each learner will then choose three elective subjects from the pathway selected.
Those opting for STEM are generally expected to take Core Mathematics as part of their subjects.
Published guidance has listed several combinations that learners may consider. These include Core Mathematics, Biology and Chemistry; Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry; Biology, Chemistry and Computer Studies; as well as Core Mathematics, Chemistry and Computer Studies.
The choice can also affect the courses a learner may pursue after completing Grade 12.
Core Mathematics, Biology and Chemistry is associated with medicine-related routes, while Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry supports engineering and physical sciences.
Public national schools, commonly classified as Cluster 1 or C1 senior schools, are among the institutions expected to provide STEM education.
Education officials have indicated that national schools should offer STEM and, in many cases, all three senior-school pathways because they have the staffing and laboratory capacity needed to support the programmes.
Published education reports have named a number of boys' and girls' schools among those offering STEM.
The boys' institutions include Alliance High School and Mang'u High School in Kiambu, Nairobi School, Lenana School, Starehe Boys' Centre, Kakamega School, Maseno School, Kapsabet Boys, Maranda High School, Kangaru School, Nyeri High School, Kagumo High School, Friends School Kamusinga, St Mary's Kibabii and Moi Forces Academy.
Among the girls' schools are Alliance Girls' High School in Kiambu, The Kenya High School in Nairobi, Maryhill Girls, Pangani Girls, Moi Girls Eldoret, Loreto Limuru, Bishop Gatimu Ngandu Girls, Precious Blood Riruta and Lugulu Girls.
Kiambu, Nairobi and Nakuru have some of the highest numbers of C1 schools based on published counts. Families in these counties therefore have a wider number of national schools to consider when making their selections.
But a C1 classification should not be taken to mean that a school has every STEM combination available.
Subject packages differ between institutions, making it important for families to confirm the exact options before submitting their choices.
Check subjects before naming a school
Parents should begin the process by discussing the learner's preferred STEM subjects before deciding which schools to list.
The Ministry's selection portal, selection.education.go.ke, contains information on the pathways and subject combinations declared by individual schools.
Families are expected to use the information to establish whether a selected school provides the three electives the learner wants to take.
Other factors should also be considered, including whether the school is a boarding or day institution and where it is located.
Once the choices have been entered, parents should go through them together with the learner before the final submission.
A confirmation slip should then be downloaded and kept for reference.
The “My Selections” feature also allows learners and parents to check whether the choices were successfully saved. This can be done using the learner's assessment number.
Where a learner discovers that a selection is missing, or encounters a problem involving NEMIS/KEMIS or the selection portal, the issue should be raised with the junior school or the Ministry support teams before the September 11 deadline.
The list of schools published in education reports should not be treated as a complete Ministry gazette showing every STEM combination available across the country.
Instead, the selection portal remains the main source for checking the exact subjects offered by a particular school.
After September 11, the Ministry will move to the placement stage.
Learners can therefore express a preference for a national school, but that choice will not by itself guarantee a place. Admission will only be known after the Ministry completes the placement exercise based on the selections, available school capacity and the combinations offered by individual institutions.