The 2026 Kenya Junior School Education Assessment (KJSEA) and Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) practical examinations conclude on Friday, paving the way for the start of written Form Four examinations on Monday, November 2.
A total of 1,206,028 Grade 9 candidates are sitting this year's KJSEA, while a record 1,048,355 candidates are taking the KCSE examination, crossing the one-million mark for the first time since the examination was introduced.
KJSEA candidates will sit three papers on the final day, beginning with Pre-Technical Studies at 8.30am and concluding with Integrated Science, scheduled to start at 2pm.
Pre-Technical Studies will take one hour and 40 minutes for regular candidates and two hours and 10 minutes for those using Braille.
A 30-minute break is scheduled for 10.40am before candidates proceed to Religious Education papers.
Candidates will sit their respective papers in Christian Religious Education (CRE), Islamic Religious Education (IRE) or Hindu Religious Education (HRE) from 11.10am.
The regular papers will take one hour and 30 minutes, while Braille versions will last two hours.
A 50-minute lunch break will begin at 1.10pm, ahead of the final paper, Integrated Science, which will take one hour for regular candidates and one hour and 30 minutes for those using Braille.
Meanwhile, KCSE candidates will sit their final practical examinations, with all papers scheduled to start at 8am.
The subjects on the timetable include Home Science – Clothing Construction, Art and Design, Power Mechanics, Electricity, Drawing and Design, Aviation Technology and Computer Studies.
The examinations will also cater for candidates using large-print and Braille papers.
Most practical examinations will last two hours and 30 minutes, except Home Science – Clothing Construction for candidates using Braille, which will take three hours, and Art and Design, which will take four hours.
The conclusion of the practical examinations will leave candidates with the written KCSE papers, which will run from November 2 to November 20.
The Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) ended on Wednesday, completing the assessment schedule for Grade 6 learners ahead of their transition to Junior school in January 2027.
A total of 1,380,463 learners sat the KPSEA, bringing the combined candidature for the three national assessments and examinations to 3,634,846.
The combined figure represents the largest number of candidates ever handled by the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) in a single examination cycle.
