The Higher Education Review

With a Vision to be a Top Class School of Business and Economics among the leading business schools in the world, Kibabii University School of Business and Economics was initiated in the year 2014 from the larger Faculty of Education and Social Sciences. Having a total of 250 students with four lecturers, the main course offered at Kibabii University School of Business and Economics are Bachelor of Business Management, Bachelor of Commerce, Master of Business Administration, and Master of Science in Human Resource Management; which aimed at teaching students on the dynamism of business world.

Established by Dr. Kadian Wanyama Wanyonyi as the Founding Dean, the School had two departments, that is, the departments of Business Administration and Management and Economics, Finance and Accounting. Today, Kibabii University School of Business and Economics boasts of having a total of over, 1,250 students with 15 lecturers (five are senior lecturers) and One Administrative Assistants and two Office Assistants. The School has held a total of seven convocations and churned hundreds of graduates into the labour market.

“The Business Education is unarguably a solution to Africa’s many social problems which arise because of the changes described above especially, its attendant’s risks of unemployment, poverty, low productivity and under-development. Business education offers to every individual an opportunity to develop those skills, abilities, and understandings that will enable him to handle competently his personal business affairs; to develop an understanding of the vocational opportunities available in the broad field of business; and to assume his citizenship responsibilities objectives as embodied in the School Philosophy that effective utilization of materials and human resource is paramount for the posterity of the universe”, says Dr. Rashid Simiyu Fwamba, Senior lecturer, Department of Economics, Finance and Accounting.

Marking Milestones with its Offerings
Kibabii University School of Business and Economics fulfills its mandate through teaching and learning process using a well-designed business education curricular which impact positively on students and prepare them for self-reliance and sustainability. Once a student decides to pursue a degree in business administration at Kibabii University, they will absorb a wide range of new skills which they can put to use in their everyday work life. The Business Administration Programmes will teach how to think critically, become a team player, and motivate and lead people. While undertaking these academic programmes, students will learn how to make safe business decisions and troubleshoot different problems. As a business administration graduate, they will master soft skills such as influencing those around them, communicating thoughts and ideas, giving and receiving constructive criticism, and making effective presentations. All of these skills are highly

required by employees once they graduate from the academic programmes offered by the School and enter the labour market.

“At first, students are usually willing to pursue Bachelor of Business Management/Bachelor of Commerce degrees because they feel confident in their leadership skills and firmly believe that they would successfully manage to be in charge of teams. However, once these students enter the business field, they discover that there is much more to it that can be beneficial and of interest for their future”, speaks Dr. Kadian Wanyama, Dean.

Prof. Ipara Odeo, who is the Vice Chancellor of the University, remarked that Kibabii University also serves as an excellent opportunity for networking. Whether students want to continue studying for a master's in business or want to get immediately into the job market, this School of Business and Economics is a fantastic generator of possibilities. The colleagues, professors, and mentors, all serve as a link to the next step in this field, because they are experts offering professional services to various employers hence easier to link students. Furthermore the University has established a series of MoUs with various employers including banks and Industry who have always employed the top performing students even before graduation.


Dr. Kadian Wanyonyi Wanyama, Dean - School of Business & Economics

“Kibabii University School of Business and Economics has always focused on collaborations across institutional and geographical boundaries and maintains high talent. Recognizing the emerging demands of various stakeholders in higher education and designing inclusive and dynamic academic programs are some of the strategic actions that the school of Business and Economics has pursued always. Quite a number of our graduates have taken up jobs in the national and County Governments, banking sectors, private sectors and some have become very successful entrepreneurs. Even those who did well and had first class have been sponsored for further studies. Most of the courses we offer are practical oriented and we link our students to the industries around to be able to marry theory with practicals”, highlights Dr. Sylvia Chebet Sirai who is also the Chairperson of the Department of Business Administration and Management.

Equipped with the Best
It is an established fact that a School with good infrastructure goes a long way in improving the interest of both the students and teachers alike. For this same reason Kibabii University is well equipped to offer the best learning experience. The School has Spacious and wellventilated classrooms, free WIFI, Library, well equipped laboratories, study halls, playgrounds, Teaching-Learning Materials and round the clock Electricity Facility in addition to the competent staff.

Kibabii University School of Business and Economics is cognizant of management education pedagogy hence places greater emphasis on problem identification, creativity, wisdom,

interpersonal skills, and integration across various functional areas, and the ‘art’ of leadership (Ghobadian, 2005).

School of Business and Economics of Kibabii University approach to teaching is international, integrative, innovative, and sustainable. It’s programmes include a mandatory co-op programs, international exchanges, and overseas co-op work opportunities. Sharing about the teaching staff at Kibabii, Dr. Fred Atandi, the Chairman of the Department of Economics, Finance and Accounting shares that, “These days the three (international, integrative and innovative) are making big headlines in news about business education.

"Kibabii University School of Business & Economics has always focused on collaborations across institutional & geographical boundaries & maintains high talent

Interestingly, the required profile of the business faculty does not only involve teaching experience but also and most importantly research expertise, field experience and international exposure. At Kibabii University School of Business and Economics, we understand the importance of preparing students for futuristic job roles. We are not just collaborating with companies to open new window of opportunities, but are also setting up an Entrepreneurship Incubation Hub Centre that will foster training to small scale businesses, industry managers, students and case studies analysis. This will serve the entire East and Central Africa. We intend to increase its academic Programmes from the current ten (10) to fifteen (15) by the year 2025”.

Marching Ahead with Futuristic Approach
Kibabii University School of Business and Economics has established MoUs with KASNEB, KISM, KRA, Kenya Society of Professional Co-operators (KSPC) and IHRM whereby the facilitators come on campus at various intervals to train and mentor students on their career path in the job market. This enables students to acquaint themselves with the dynamic job market skills required for their development and growth in the industry. These further help in updating the lecturers on the emerging issues in the professional world class of business. Kibabii University has embraced a model of competences composed of skills which business professionals should possess once they graduate.

The multilevel model considers competencies from individual level to contextual (environmental) level requirements in order to start or lead a company in a complex and changing work environment. Through research and seminars, the faculty is learning about the emerging competencies of different levels and types required from the current and future graduates when they reach the marketplace. Doing so will definitely help Kibabii University to design academic programs and services involving co-curricular and core-curricular activities on the campus in order to build and evaluate those different but interdependent competences. With state of Art School of Business and Economics Complex housing Innovation and Entrepreneurship Laboratory, Professional Courses, Centre of Excellency in Trade and Industry and Research Centre in Business related areas, these will transform the School, University and the world globally.