Dedan Kimathi University of Technology (DeKUT)
Dedan Kimathi University of Technology (DeKUT) is a Public University that focuses on Quality Education, Research, Innovation, Technology Development and Transfer. The University is a successor of Kimathi University College of Technology (KUCT), a constituent college of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT). Before KUCT, the University was an institute going by the name Kimathi Institute of Technology (KIT) established by the community with the focus of building on education and technology to better the society; a heritage the University has held to this point and lives by.
The University offers a wide range of programmes both at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels in various Schools and Institutes. The programmes are spread across Engineering, Health & Applied Sciences, Business Management and Economics, Computing, Food Science and Technology, Leather Technology, Geothermal Energy Technology, Geomatics, Geospatial Information Systems and Remote Sensing, Tourism and Hospitality, Criminology and Forensics Management, Technical and Professional Studies. The University also offers diploma and Certificate courses for mid-level technical skills. The programmes offered by the University are approved by the Senate and the various designated bodies like the Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK) and Commission for University Education (CUE) that was established by the government of Kenya through the Commission for University Education Act, 2010. At the core of training in the various fields, DeKUT recognizes research as a pillar of both institutional and national development and her strategic focus is to create unique structures for research, innovation and technology development and transfer.
The University has been ambitious in establishing physical facilities to serve as lecture theatres, library, laboratories and offices for both administrative and academic staff. In line with her vision of being a Premier Technological University excelling in Quality Education, Research and Technology Transfer, DeKUT has put up expansive and well equipped Engineering workshops and supporting Physics and Chemistry laboratories.
In her pursuit to deliver on her vision and mission, Dedan Kimathi University of Technology (DeKUT) has continually leveraged on partnerships and collaborations that have led to establishments such as the upcoming Science and Technology Park; we are spearheading the establishment of a Science and Technology Park (STP), with the support of the Ministry of Education, which will be an engine for innovation, incubation, development and commercialization of technology. This will in turn stimulate the development of entrepreneurship, which will drive job creation in the country and develop self-reliant youths. This new development will help build on the existing University Innovation and Incubation Hub (DeHUB) to a very great extent and take the University to a point of strength in living her Vision.
Dedan Kimathi University of Technology (DeKUT) is a Chartered Public University that has two campuses: the Main Campus that is located 6 KM from Nyeri town along Nyeri- Nyahururu highway and Nairobi Campus located at Pension Towers, Loita Street. The location accords students a serene and enabling learning environment. The Institution endeavors to provide an academically stimulating, culturally diverse, and quality learning environment that fosters research, innovation, and technology development towards producing relevant technical and managerial human resources and leaders to contribute to the attainment of national development goals.
The credibility of our courses: At DeKUT, we note that technological development requires not only the mastery of techniques but the ability to establish and run successful enterprises. It is only then that technology can contribute to the wealth creation of a country. Our mix of academic programs are spread over Engineering, ICT, Food Technology, Health Sciences, Applied Sciences, and Business Studies - fit for this purpose. Of critical importance is that all our Academic Programmes are accredited by both local and international accrediting bodies. Locally, the University’s Programmes have been accredited by the Regulatory Body, Commission for University Education, and respective Professional Bodies where they apply.
Value for time: Through the effective application of the trimester system of study, DeKUT ensures that her students complete their courses within the shortest time possible while not compromising quality. For instance, students taking four-year’s courses graduate within three and half years while those taking five-year’s courses graduate within four and half years. Apart from the trimester system, time advantage is a privilege that DeKUT students get through ensuring that the semesters and learning is not interrupted by strikes and any issues that can be solved amicably between the students and management as well as the management, staff, and the government. As the Vice-Chancellor likes to say, "Time is a valuable resource that once wasted can never be recovered and proper utilization of time sets you apart."
Keen on Quality Education and Holistic Development: At DeKUT we understand that education is not just about academic knowledge and skills but the holistic development of a person. Through involvement in various co-curricular and extracurricular activities within the university; academic tours, sports, community service, clubs, environmental programs, outdoor excursions, and Mt. Kenya expeditions, we help students become the best they can be by developing their intellectual, emotional, social, physical, artistic, creative and spiritual potentials.
State-of-the-art facilities: At DeKUT, we do not gamble with quality. The University has invested in facilities geared towards providing students education that does not just give them good grades but adds value. From laboratories where students interact with the most modern machines and technologies with the help of their lecturers and the lab technicians to the library that provides competitive, adequate and relevant information services in support of learning, teaching, and research. Several students have featured with great innovations developed using these technologies and others have challenged the existing technologies through research.
Promoting Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Quality Education, Research and Technology Transfer is core at Dedan Kimathi University. It is as a result of this that the University has a trademark of locally produced coffee from the University farm, yogurt in three different flavors (coffee, strawberry, and vanilla) as well as Chia and Bamboo yogurt. Training of students backed by practical sessions in the Food Technology Workshops gave birth to these products. The Director IFBT, Dr. Eddy Owaga, says that the Institute looks forward to maintaining the best quality in all the products. The next plan is to develop other value-added products from non-conventional fruits and vegetables towards satisfying the demand for naturally healthy foods. The institute will later diversify to meat products particularly sausage from the pork reared at DeKUT farm. Our students from the institute of food and bioresources technology are involved in such processes enhancing what they learn in class.
The University, in 2015, established an innovation and incubation center (DeHUB) aimed at inspiring innovation and entrepreneurship by way of transforming innovative ideas emanating from within and outside DeKUT community into products, processes, and services for commercial exploitation. Students taking different courses are mentored from this center into creating enterprises and becoming their own brands by using what they learn in class as their base. That way, we do not just graduate job seekers but job creators and contributors to national development. So far, several projects from students have been incubated and some are at the commercial level. With the science park construction at the University underway, this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Ventures and Collaborations: DeKUT continuously establishes partnerships and collaborations towards enriching the training offered to her students. Some of the Universities with which DeKUT has collaborated are from Countries such as Japan, Germany, France, Canada, and Hungary. Students and staff benefit through these collaborations by working together in an exchange for technology and training towards enhancing education quality.
2016 saw us venture into 3D printing: Rapid prototyping (RP) has been ongoing research among M.Sc. Advanced Manufacturing & Automation Engineering students at Dedan Kimathi University of Technology (DeKUT). RP is an emerging collection of materials processing technologies and business practices, which together shorten product development cycles. RP technologies are frequently used towards the beginning of the product development lifecycle to create prototypes or parts used to test and verify designs before full-blown production begins. RP utilizes a number of different additive manufacturing methods such as 3D Printing, Stereolithography, Selective Laser Sintering, Fused Deposition Modeling etc., to create real objects from a CAD file. This venture will inspire technological growth in the University and the Nation by enhancing engineering skills among the students. This will help bridge the gap between the Institutions of higher learning and industries.
Another venture is the introduction of Siemens Mechatronic Systems Certification Program (SMSCP). Manufacturing, packaging and other systems are becoming more complex and pervasive, and more knowledge is required to design, operate and maintain them than ever before. Complex mechatronic systems are the nexus of mechanical, electrical, and computerized technologies. There is a growing need for qualified people with upto date knowledge of integrated mechatronic systems. A world leader in mechatronic engineering, SIEMENS, has responded to this need by creating an industry certification program that will help students, workers, industries, teachers and institutions. Siemens Technik Akademie administrates the program and works with partner institutions worldwide to implement the program. SMSCP’s technical content focuses on key industrial skill areas, such as electrical components, sensors, motor controls, PLCs, hydraulics and pneumatics. In addition to teaching the technical knowledge, SMSCP stresses trouble-shooting and system-based technical thinking via hands-on training. This technical training, paired with our engineering degree programmes will create well-grounded workers that can easily meet the challenges of high tech and advanced manufacturing industries. Dedan Kimathi University of technology has partnered with Siemens, as the first in Africa, to enhance her training in Mechatronic Engineering by offering this certification. A DeKUT Siemens Training and Certification Centre was established and is now an accredited centre by EBK for Continuous Professional Development of practicing engineers in the industry.
An International Experience: DeKUT has a number of vibrant student exchange programs which are in line with the University’s vision of producing globally competitive graduates and building international linkages to grow her profile as a global premier university of technology. International exchanges are life-changing experiences gained by students. This makes such programs critical to the institution’s internationalization strategy. To date, a number of DeKUT students have taken part in assignments inside leading laboratories and manufacturing facilities around the world which have had a profound effect on the technical abilities of the students. In addition, living in a foreign country for two or three months at such an early age in their careers gives students invaluable insights and offers them new lenses through which to look at the world. We have signed memoranda of understanding with various universities globally for the exchange of students. These include the International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience (IAESTE) and the Association for the International Exchange of Students in Economics and Commerce (AIESEC). Through these mechanisms, DeKUT has been able to send and receive students from different parts of the world which has not only enhanced the diversity of the university student population but also enabled DeKUT students to gain valuable international work experience.
Going the extra mile- we are family: DeKUT endeavors to provide quality education to all irrespective of their social and financial background. It is to this effect that in 2014, the University established an Endowment Fund (DeKUTEF) with the goal of supporting talented and financially disadvantaged students to access and successfully complete the highly competitive programs offered by the University through the provision of scholarships and bursaries. This will ultimately aid the University to operate truly to its historical foundation and heritage of being an Institution of the society and working for the improvement of the people. We hope not only to attract great minds to this Premier Technological University but to also be able to retain them without the hindrance of financial constraints.
University Conservancy: With courses in the institute of tourism and hospitality management, the University established a conservancy that is a tourist attraction as well as an avenue for the students to practice service in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry.
Our Alumni: Our Alumni take pride in a smooth transition to the job market and credibility.
