HELB extends student loan application deadline

HELB extends student loan application deadline

HELB confirmed that first-time applicants now have until September 14 to apply. Continuing students, meanwhile, have until September 7, extended from the previous August 31 deadline.

The Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) has announced a new extension for student loan applications, allowing both first-time and continuing students extra time to submit their requests.

This move ensures learners in universities and Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) institutions do not miss out on funding opportunities.

In a statement on Tuesday, September 2, HELB confirmed that first-time applicants now have until September 14 to apply. Continuing students, meanwhile, have until September 7, extended from the previous August 31 deadline.

"Applications for first-time and continuing university and TVET loans are open," the board said.

The extension covers students applying for the second, third, or fourth time, depending on the length of their academic programmes. Applicants can submit their forms via *642#, the HELB mobile App, or the M-Pesa mini App.

By September 1, HELB had received a total of 1,117,239 applications for loans and scholarships. Of these, 741,931 came from university students, while 375,308 were from TVET learners.

The decision follows instructions from Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba issued on Friday, August 29, which called for the loan application timeline for first-year students to be extended to September 14.

The extension is expected to benefit 802,159 students across universities and TVET institutions.

“We are pleased to notify parents, guardians, university and TVET students that the Universities Fund and the Higher Education Loans Board have, as of today, disbursed a total of  Sh23.16 billion in financial support to 802,159 University and TVET students across the country,” Ogamba said.

“To ensure that no student is left behind, the Universities Fund and the Higher Education Loans Board have been instructed to extend the timeline for first-year applicants to 14th September, 2025,” he added.

Of the total Sh23.16 billion released, Sh4.1 billion came from the Universities Fund as scholarships for public university students. HELB provided the remaining Sh19.06 billion, including Sh7.6 billion for tuition fees and Sh11.46 billion for student upkeep.

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