KCSE 2025: The Grades Are Out — Congratulations but...

Just like years past, we have collectively held our breath.

Names are checked. Mean grades are compared. WhatsApp groups explode. Headlines scream about who “made it” and who didn’t. And once again, the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) results for the Class of 2025 have given us plenty to talk about.

At first glance, the numbers look impressive.

Nearly 270,000 students scored C+ and above, qualifying for direct university entry. That’s an increase from last year — a genuine achievement. Even more encouraging, girls slightly outnumbered boys, continuing a quiet but powerful trend toward gender balance in national exams. For a system long criticised for leaving girls behind, this matters.

So yes — credit where it’s due. 👏

But after the celebrations settled, I found myself less interested in the top scorers and more curious about everyone else.

Here’s the figure that rarely trends on social media:

More than 350,000 students scored D+, D or D-.

That’s over a third of all candidates. If you widen the lens just a bit, almost half of the KCSE cohort didn’t meet the traditional academic “success” threshold.

Historically, this is where our national conversation stops.

We quietly label these learners as having “failed”.

We lower expectations.

We assume limited futures.

And then we move on.

But this group has actually been far more important to Kenya’s future than we admit?

For decades, the message was simple:

Get good grades. Go to a good university. Get a good job. Life sorted.

The 8-4-4 system was extremely good at producing exam results — but far less effective at nurturing creativity, curiosity, critical thinking, or practical problem-solving. Success became something you memorised your way into.

Research backs this up. Education systems that are heavily exam-oriented often suppress creativity by rewarding recall over inquiry, compliance over experimentation.

And yet, the world our young people are entering no longer works like that.

Jobs are disappearing.

New ones are being invented.

Entrepreneurship is no longer optional.

Adaptability matters more than perfect recall.

Which raises an uncomfortable question: Are we celebrating the right outcomes?

Rethinking the “Lower Grades” Narrative

Here’s a reality check many don’t like to hear:

Some of the most creative, resilient and innovative people don’t thrive in exam halls.

The students who scored D or D+ are often the same ones who:

* Start small businesses early

* Excel in hands-on skills like construction, mechanics, plumbing or design

* Adapt quickly to real-world challenges

* Learn by doing, failing, and trying again

Kenya’s TVET and artisan sectors — when properly supported — have proven to increase employability and self-employment, especially in construction, manufacturing and service industries. In fact, studies show that youth who go through technical and vocational training are often better prepared for practical work and entrepreneurship than their purely academic peers.

These are the people who build the nation — literally.

While we chase degrees, they wire the buildings.

While we debate policy, they lay the bricks.

While graduates wait years for jobs, they create work.

Now, this isn’t an attack on high achievers. Far from it.

Kenya needs its academics.

It needs researchers.

It needs scientists, engineers, doctors and scholars.

But here’s the challenge to the C+ and above crowd:

Your responsibility does not end at graduation.

We need you to:

* Go beyond collecting certificates

* Produce knowledge that solves real problems

* Write research that informs policy

* Build technologies, systems and ideas that unlock opportunity

If academic excellence only results in unemployment, underemployment, or imported solutions, then we’ve missed the point entirely.

A nation cannot survive on grades alone.

So What Should Change?

If we’re serious about Kenya’s future, three things must happen:

1. We must stop equating grades with intelligence or worth

Talent is diverse. So should opportunity.

2. We must invest seriously in TVET and alternative pathways

Not as a “fallback”, but as a respected, well-resourced choice.

3. We must redefine success

Contribution should matter more than ranking.

To the Class of 2025

Congratulations — truly.

But understand this:

Your KCSE result is not your destiny. It’s just a data point.

Whether you scored an A or a D-, the work ahead is the same:

To think critically.

To build creatively.

To contribute meaningfully.

Kenya doesn’t need perfect papers.

It needs bold builders, curious thinkers and problem-solvers at every level.

And that work?

It starts now.