Teacher internship applications 10 times more than available slots

TSC's chief executive Nancy Macharia addresses the press during the Muranga County Secondary School Heads Conference at Noble Hotel in Eldoret town, Uasin Gishu County, on May 12, 2016. PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • In a statement on Thursday, the commission said 97,736 teachers applied to teach in secondary schools and 5,182 in primary schools.
  • The commission changed the application deadline from Wednesday to Thursday next week.

A total of 102,918 trained but jobless teachers have applied for the 10,300 internship positions the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) advertised on October 8.

In a statement on Thursday, the commission said 97,736 teachers applied to teach in secondary schools and 5,182 in primary schools.

The applications were made through its website, www.tsc.go.ke.

“The commission has received some concerns from applicants who have experienced difficulties in making the application,” Catherine Lenairoshi, from the corporate communication department, said in a statement.

Ms Lenairoshi said the TSC had therefore increased the system's capacity to allow applications.

The commission changed the application deadline from Wednesday to Thursday next week.

A total of 4,300 of those who qualify will be deployed to primary schools and 6,000 to secondary schools.

The huge recruitment drive is a desperate shot at easing a severe teacher shortage in the basic education sector, currently standing at more than 100,000.