The 2026 uniRank listing has ranked 35 public universities in Kenya based on defined selection criteria as explained; the institutions included must be chartered, licensed, or accredited by the relevant higher education authorities in Kenya.
Eligible universities are required to offer at least three-year bachelor’s degree programmes or postgraduate master’s and doctoral degrees.
Further, it added that the universities must also deliver courses mainly through traditional, on-campus learning rather than distance education formats.
The uniRank ranking provides a structured comparison of public universities based on institutional eligibility and academic delivery standards within the national higher education system.
“List of 35 public Kenyan Universities ranked by the 2026 uniRank University Ranking and meeting the following uniRank selection criteria: being chartered, licensed or accredited by the appropriate higher education-related organization in Kenya, offering at least three-year bachelor’s degrees or postgraduate master’s or doctoral degrees, delivering courses predominantly in a traditional, non-distance education format,” uniRank noted.
Bottom 10 Public Universities in Kenya- UniRank Report
The bottom 10 public universities in Kenya’s 2026 ranking, starting from the last position, are as follows;
- Alupe University
- Taita Taveta University
- Tharaka University
- Kaimosi Friends University
- Garissa University
- University of Kabianga
- Rongo University
- Tom Mboya University
- Multimedia University of Kenya
- Laikipia University
These institutions were positioned at the lower end of the ranking based on comparative indicators such as academic visibility, research output, and institutional performance within the national university system.
From the ranking, top-ranked public universities in Kenya’s 2026 listing included the University of Nairobi, Kenyatta University, and Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology.
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Alupe, Taita Taveta, Tharaka and Kaimosi Friends University Details
Alupe University is a public university in Busia County, Kenya, located on 200 acres between Busia and Malaba, about 7 km from Busia town on the Busia-Malaba Road.
It started as the Alupe campus of Moi University in 2008, became Alupe University College in 2015, and was chartered as a fully-fledged university on 22 August 2022.
Alupe has 4 schools: Health Sciences, Education and Social Sciences, Business, Economics and Human Resource Development, and Science, Technology and Engineering.
Taita Taveta University is located in Taita Taveta County along the Voi-Mwatate Road, about 8 km from the Nairobi-Mombasa highway. It was chartered on 7 October 2016.
The university has 5 schools, and it is known for its technical and applied training focus, especially in science, engineering, and related disciplines.
Tharaka University is in Tharaka South Sub-County, Tharaka Nithi County, near Gatunga Town. It was chartered on 2 August 2022.
Garissa University is a public university in Garissa, Kenya. It was chartered on 23 October 2017 and grew out of Garissa University College, which had been established earlier as a constituent college of Moi University.
The University of Kabianga is located in Kabianga, Kericho County. It began operations in 2008 as a constituent college of Moi University and attained full university status in 2013 through the conferment of its charter.
Rongo University is a public university located at Kitere Hills in Rongo Sub-County, Migori County, about 11 km from Rongo Town and 2.5 km off the Rongo–Migori Highway. It was awarded a charter on 7 October 2016.
Tom Mboya University is a public university in Homa Bay County. It was awarded a charter on 2 August 2022.
Multimedia University of Kenya is a chartered public university in Karen Ward, Langata Sub-County, Nairobi County, along Magadi Road, about 25 km southwest of Nairobi city centre. It offers programmes through five faculties: Engineering and Technology, Science and Technology, Media and Communication, Computing and Information Technology, and Business and Law.
Laikipia University is a public university in Laikipia County along the Nyahururu-Nakuru Highway, about 11 km from Nyahururu town. It was chartered on 19 February 2013.
Also Read: Kenyatta University Student Wins Global Huawei ICT Award in China
About uniRank
uniRank is a global higher-education directory and search engine covering more than 14,000 institutions across over 200 countries, providing rankings and reviews of universities and colleges.
Its rankings focus mainly on web-based visibility and popularity indicators rather than academic research performance, making them non-academic in nature.
Institutions listed must meet basic criteria such as official recognition or accreditation, degree-awarding authority, and predominantly on-campus delivery of instruction.
The platform is commonly used for general comparison and institutional discovery, but it differs from research-focused systems such as QS and Times Higher Education due to its methodology.
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