Top Performing Kericho Student Stranded at Home Working as Herdsman to Raise Medical College Tuition Fees

Vincent Chepkwony, a top KCSE performer from Kericho, works as a herdsman to raise KMTC fees. Discover his plea for help to start his Pharmacy diploma.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 30, 2026, 3:22 AM EDT

Source: The information in this article was sourced from TUKO.co.ke

Academic Ambition Stalled by Severe Financial Hardship

A young scholar from Konoi, Kericho County, is currently facing the risk of forfeiting his admission to a medical program due to a lack of financial resources. Vincent Chepkwony achieved a mean grade of B minus in the 2025 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education, a performance that earned him a competitive slot to study Pharmacy at the Kenya Medical Training College in Nakuru. Despite his academic success, Chepkwony remains in his home village while his peers have already reported for orientation, highlighting the stark divide between merit and the ability to pay for higher education in the region.

Daily Manual Labor in Pursuit of a Medical Diploma

To bridge the financial gap, Chepkwony has taken up employment as a herdsman in a neighboring village, spending his days caring for cattle to save for his registration. However, the wages provided by this manual labor are insufficient to cover the significant costs of college tuition and administrative fees. The young man expressed a growing sense of despair, noting that his daily earnings are far from the amount required to secure his reporting date. His dream of becoming a pharmacist is now under threat as the deadline for admission passes without any improvement in his financial status.

Family Assets Exhausted Amid Economic Struggles

The Chepkwony family’s situation is particularly dire, as they lack any tangible assets or land that could be liquidated to fund his education. His mother, Josephine Chepkemoi, has publicly pleaded for assistance, stating that her lack of employment has left the family without any means to support their children's advancement. The family’s modest background means that Vincent’s education was intended to be the catalyst for societal change within their household, but without an external sponsor, that potential remains untapped.