A mobile application (I-masomo) for enhancing information access for university course selection in Kenya

Abstract

The main objective of this this research was to develop a mobile application and a web portal that would assiststudents, parents and guardians in decision making throughaccess of relevant information in relation to university courses and admission requirements. In Kenya, there has been an increase in demand to access university education. This has been attributed mainly to the increase in number of candidates who obtain the minimum university entry requirement grade of C+ and above in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education examination. This study addresses the recurring problem of students seeking admission to Kenya’s public universities having to manually peruse through large volumes of University Calendar entries in search of their desired degree programs and the requisite requirements for admission to such programs. Consequently, it aims to collate and avail such information on a platform accessible to the students, as well as other interested parties, via mobile phones and web platforms. The need to identify the right course and career of choice is evident despite the few slots offered in public universities. In Kenya, there is still no integrated system that can be used to identify the right course based on the performance of a student. To enhance access to university information, a mobile application “i-Masomo” was designed, developed and tested. In addition, a web portal was also incorporated to ease information access and decision making from a central point. This study describes the step by step design and development techniques and process of the i-Masomo mobile application and the web portal. On the other hand, the finding of this study express that majority of prospective students, parents and teachers access academic related information from the internet. The study also ascertains that the i-Masomo mobile application and the web portal has a significant potential in dissemination of information about university course selection and university enrolment in Kenya.