National schools produced the highest number of top-performing students in the 2025 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Migos Ogamba has announced.
Speaking during the release of the results at Chebissas Boys Secondary School in Eldoret on January 8, 2026, CS Ogamba said a total of 1,932 candidates obtained an overall mean grade of A (plain), with national schools accounting for 1,526 of these top grades. Extra County schools followed with 197, and private schools had 185.
“This is an improvement compared to 1,693 candidates who achieved an A grade in 2024,” CS Ogamba said.
University Entry and Pass Rates Improve
A total of 270,715 candidates (27.18%) qualified for direct university entry with a mean grade of C+ and above, up from 246,391 candidates (25.53%) in 2024.
Candidates achieving C- and above increased to 507,131 (50.92%) from 476,889 (49.41%) in 2024, while those attaining a pass grade of D+ and above rose to 634,082 (63.67%) from 605,774 (62.76%) the previous year.
Sub-County schools recorded more candidates with C+ and above than County schools, with 72,699 and 36,600 respectively.
Examination Integrity and Candidate Numbers
CS Ogamba confirmed that 1,180 candidates were involved in examination irregularities during the 2025 KCSE.
A total of 993,226 candidates sat for the 2025 KCSE, an increase of 30,714 (3.19%) from 962,512 candidates in 2024. Of these, 492,012 were male (49.54%) and 501,214 were female (50.46%), marking the second consecutive year that female candidates outnumbered males. However, ten counties recorded more male than female candidates.
Age and Performance by Subject
The number of candidates aged 16 years and below increased from 20,546 (2.13%) in 2024 to 26,391 (2.65%) in 2025. The majority of candidates, 716,048 (72.02%), were aged between 17 and 19 years, considered the appropriate age bracket.
Female candidates performed better than male candidates in six subjects: English, Kiswahili, Kenyan Sign Language, Home Science, CRE, and Art & Design. Male candidates outperformed females in 11 subjects, including Mathematics Alternatives A and B, Biology, Chemistry, General Science, History & Government, Geography, IRE, Building & Construction, and Business Studies.
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