SCHOOL OF PURE AND APPLIED SCIENCES (SPAS): LESSON LEARNED
INTENTIONS OF IMPLEMENTION ON PRACTICAL-ORIENTED MODEL OF LEARNING
- The Post graduate students in Chemistry were practically trained on the use of equipment for research such as GC/MC/ ICP/MS. UV-VIS, HPLC in the School of Pure and Applied Sciences
- Incase of the equipment that were not available in MKU, the students were taken to Geology and mines, ICIPE and KEBs. The students later wrote a comprehensive report the students are applying this concepts in the research
- A fourth year Mr. Shem Muriuri , an industrial chemistry student working with Ms Rose Waruguru, developed a new innovation of energy saving fuel
UNIVERSISITY- INDUSTRY COLLABORATION
- Mount Kenya University through the Directorate of MKU Foundation organized a successful breakfast meeting with 20 industries under the umbrella of the Kenya Association of Manufacturers, Central Region chapter on 21stFebruary 2019 at MKU Senate Boardroom.
During the meeting, representatives from the industry suggested areas of possible partnership that will enhance practical-oriented training that qualifies students for the labour market and for individual transformation as envisaged in Mount Kenya University Mission.
The meeting resolved to form a technical working group that will spearhead the proposed areas of partnership and linkages that will include curriculum review, more extensive internship opportunities, and people-centred research collaboration.
In attendance
- BIDCO Africa
- Kenya Nut Company,
- Octane Logistics,
- CentroFood Industries Ltd.,
- Blue Nile Rolling Mills Ltd.,
- Broadway bakery,
- Bakex Millers,
- Kel Chemicals,
- Chania Feeds ltd.,
- Capwell Industries Ltd.,
- Kenya Vehicle Manufacturers Ltd.,
- Dune Packaging Ltd.,
- Medisel (K) Ltd.,
- Green Pencils Ltd.,
- Neo Kenya Mpya Ltd.,
- Family bank,
- Stanbic Bank,
- GT bank,
- Equity Bank
- The Luke Hotel Cravers.
- A student University in March 2019 to
- A fourth year student, Mr. Moses Kariuki in SPAS is working on a project „the components of industrial effluent disposed by Bidco Africa, to the environment as his final year project under supervision of Dr. Mary Muriuki and Mr. Wilson Maiyo. Dr. Mary Muriuki has talked to Bidco Africa and they are willing to work with the student
USING RESEARCH TO SOLVE COMMUNITY PROBLEMS
- Bore-Water Purification Project: This involved the faculty, Thika Water Sewarage Company (THIWASCO) to determine the purity of the water, the phase 2 for this task is to initiate a pure water producing project which will generate money for the SPAS
- Dr. Mary Muriuki was nominated to be in the water quality and purity committee Kiambu County Steering Committee which addressing the issue of the scarcity of water in the county, MKU will be used in prodution of the required research data
DEVELOPMENT/REVIEW OF CURRICULUM BASED ON MARKET OR INDUSTRIAL NEEDS
TheMKU School of Pure and Applied Sciences (SPAS) under the leadership od Dr. Mary Muriuki organized and hosted Nairobi Region Actuarial Sciences Society of Kenya Convention in March 2019
Objectives:
Curriculum Review
Actuarial professional Papers
Employability of the Actuarial graduates
The outcome of this convention is that the Bachelor of Science in Actuarial Sciences is currently being reviewed by a team MKU SPAS faculty and external Professional Actuarialist
CHALLENGES FACED
- Financial Challlenges
- Industry willingness to collaborate with universities as well as industries willingness to disclose their needs/gap to the university
- Workload+due to scarcity of PhDs in pure Science, the faculty members often are assigned an extra workload hence minimizing the time available for research
HOW THE CHALLENGES APPROACHED
Financial challlenges
By writing grants at institution and inter institution level
Grants won include
Seeding LABS grant: A multi-million grant; The grant is inform of reserch equipment
PI. DR: Mary Muriuki
links: http://www.spas.mku.ac.ke/?p=256
Industry willingness to collaborate with universities as well as industries willingness to disclode their needs/gap to the university
Follow-up meeting with the industries are scheduled inorder to build rapport with industries
Workload
Collaboration with other universities for both research and teaching initiatives
- SPAS hosted Prof. Esther Obonyo, faculty member from Penn State University, USA
- MKU, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Dr. Bibianne Waiganjo-Aidi and the Dean School of Pure and Apllied Sciences, Dr. Mary Muriuki, visited UK London University for discussion on twinning research and teaching
http://www.mku.ac.ke/index.php/mku-latest-news/1400-mku-at-the-uk-kenyan-student-conference-2019
Financial challlenges
By writing grants at institution and inter institution level
Grants won include
Seeding LABS grant: A multi-million grant; The grant is inform of reserch equipment
PI. DR: Mary Muriuki
links: http://www.spas.mku.ac.ke/?p=256
Industry willingness to collaborate with universities as well as industries willingness to disclode their needs/gap to the University
Follow-up meeting with the industries are scheduled inorder to build rapport with industries
Workload
Collaboration with other universities for both research and teaching initiatives
- SPAS hosted Prof. Esther Obonyo, faculty member from Penn State University, USA
- MKU, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Dr. Bibianne Waiganjo-Aidi and the Dean School of Pure and Apllied Sciences, Dr. Mary Muriuki, visited UK London University for discussion on twinning research and teaching
http://www.mku.ac.ke/index.php/mku-latest-news/1400-mku-at-the-uk-kenyan-student-conference-2019
Financial challlenges
By writing grants at institution and inter institution level
Grants won include
Seeding LABS grant: A multi-million grant; The grant is inform of reserch equipment
PI. DR: Mary Muriuki
links: http://www.spas.mku.ac.ke/?p=256
Industry willingness to collaborate with universities as well as industries willingness to disclode their needs/gap to the university
Follow-up meeting with the industries are scheduled inorder to build rapport with industries
Workload
Collaboration with other Universities for both research and teaching initiatives
- SPAS hosted Prof. Esther Obonyo, faculty member from Penn State University, USA
- MKU, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Dr. Bibianne Waiganjo-Aidi and the Dean School of Pure and Applied Sciences, Dr. Mary Muriuki, visited Londo, UK University for discussion on twinning research and teaching
http://www.mku.ac.ke/index.php/mku-latest-news/1400-mku-at-the-uk-kenyan-student-conference-2019
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