Tertiary Education
Although most secondary students who qualify for university admission are eligible for a student loan from the government, these loans do not cover relocation costs or basic living expenses. As a result, undertaking tertiary studies becomes a particularly difficult issue for young women from financially challenged circumstances, especially as the opportunities to obtain safe, part-time employment to supplement their living costs are severely limited.
Tertiary Pathways Program
The Vanessa Grant Trust initiated the Tertiary Pathways Program (TPP) in 2015 with the support of donors from Australia, as a logical transition to continue the educational development of talented young women. The program facilitates a route from high school to tertiary institutions, primarily for bursary students graduating from the Vanessa Grant Girls’ School (VGGS).
Performance-based bursaries are available for the standard four-year period of university education, and cover relocation, modest daily living costs, rent for safe accommodations, public transport and supplies, as well as fees for some students. Students also receive a course to prepare them for independent, urban living, personal health management and HIV awareness.
The first Tertiary Pathways Program participant entered Education in 2015 at Egerton University, the oldest higher learning institution in the country and one of the highest ranking. By the end of 2024, 67 young women will have entered the program, with a presence in every highly ranked university in Kenya. They are studying education, law, commerce, agriculture, sciences, computer science, public policy, social work and tourism. 22 students had completed the Program by the end of 2024, and now work in education, a variety of industries, the sciences, finance and law.
One VGGS graduate has recently been admitted to the Bar as an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya. Esther Mwangi initially attended Gogar Primary School, and was sponsored to attend VGGS for secondary school before going on to study Law at Nairobi University. Esther was one of the very early participants in the Tertiary Pathways Program (2016).
Supporting the progression of the next generation of talented young women through university and enabling them to focus on attaining tertiary qualifications is both a responsibility and a privilege.
Our goal is to ensure that at least 15-20 VGGS graduates can benefit from the Tertiary Pathways Program every year, enabling them to take up their hard-earned place at university.
Meet one of our proud alumni here.
“Women belong in all places where decisions are being made… It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.”
Ruth Bader Ginsberg, US Supreme Court Judge