Blog

Introduction

The Bachelors of Veterinary Medicine degree programme is designed to train personnel with the requisite knowledge and skills to work as Veterinary Surgeons, animal scientists and nutritionists, Veterinary Pharmacists, Public Health Officers as well as epidemiologists among many other skills. University Of Nairobi UoNBI Veterinary Medicine

The Faculty of Veterinary Medicine has endeavoured to review the curriculum regularly in line with the University of Nairobi’s mission of producing high-level manpower. The revised programme has responded to the emerging needs by addressing animals in ASAL regions, emphasizing acquisition of practical skills including business and establishment of mentorship. This ensures that, the graduates are well equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to meet the expectations of the profession. University Of Nairobi UoNBI Veterinary Medicine

1.      Goal and Objectives:

To train manpower with skills to meet all national needs in livestock production and health.

Specific Objectives

1.1    To train graduates equipped with skills to diagnose, treat and prevent livestock and wildlife diseases

1.2    To train graduates with skills to deal with all Public Health issues as relates to animals and their products

1.3    To equip graduates with skills and potential to serve in relevant tertiary educational and research institutions in Kenya, regionally and internationally.

1.4    To enhance adequately entrepreneurial skills among graduates to make them competitive in the world economy.

i)       The degree is a Five year programme leading to the award of Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM).

ii)      Each academic year consists of two and a half semesters each except for 5th year which has two semesters.

iii)     Each semester shall be 15 weeks and the half semester shall be 8 weeks long.

iv)     A candidate must complete a minimum of 24 weeks of attachment in a recognized institution. In addition, an examinable research project must be in a specialized area selected by the candidate.

v)      The maximum duration of the programme is 14 semesters.

1.       The degree programme shall consist of four academic years of 2 semesters of 15 weeks each.

2.       At the end of the degree programme candidates shall be awarded the Bachelor of Science degree in any one of the following options taken in their fourth year of study:

          i)      Wildlife Management and conservation

          ii)     Fisheries management

          iii)    Wetlands management and conservation

          iv)    Tourism management.

Normally, the candidates will be required to carry out their thesis research under supervision and subsequently compile a thesis which would be presented for examination in the prescribed manner for Doctoral thesis in all faculties. University Of Nairobi UoNBI Veterinary Medicine

Candidates eligible for admission to the above degree programme will be required to be holders of the following qualifications:-

i)       A minimum of a C+ in KCSE with at least C (plain) in Biology or Biological Science and any one of the following subjects: Maths, Chemistry, Physics or Physical Sciences.

ii)      Two principals and one subsidiary pass at KACE level or equivalent, one of which must be in Biology and the other in any science subject.

iii)     A minimum of a C– (minus) in KCSE with an ordinary diploma in Animal Health/Agriculture/ Medical Laboratory Technology from a recognized institution.

iv)     Holders of a Degree in a Biological Science from an institution recognized by University of Nairobi Senate.

v)      Any other qualification equivalent to any of the above, subject to approval by the Senate.

3.1.   There shall be University Examinations held at the end of each year of study.

3.2.   No candidate shall be admitted to an examination unless he/she has attended all the prescribed courses of study in accordance with University regulations and to the satisfaction of the Faculty Board of Examiners.

3.3.   No candidate shall be permitted to proceed to the next year of study until he/she has satisfied the examiners in all the prescribed courses taught in that year.

3.4.   No candidate shall be allowed to graduate unless the candidate has passed in all the prescribed courses.

3.5.   There shall be special examination(s) for those candidates who miss the University examinations provided that such candidate(s) shall to the satisfaction of the Senate, prove that they were genuinely unable to take the examination(s).

3.6.   The pass mark for each course shall be 50%.

3.7.   Continuous assessment tests shall contribute 30% and the final examination 70% towards the University Examination marks for each course in the year of study.

3.8.      As the Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine degree is a non-classified, performance in each course shall be graded as follows:

             75% -100%              =     Distinction

             65% – 74%               =     Credit

             50% – 64%               =     Pass

             49% and below         =     Fail

             Compensation shall be allowed for one subject only within the academic year for marks between   46 – 49%.  For every 1 compensation mark, 2 marks shall be taken from the compensating subject.

3.9.      In any University Examination, a candidate who presents for examination for the first time; and who fails half or less of the courses, subject to rule (3.8) above shall, on the recommendation of the Faculty Board of Examiners and approval by Senate, be permitted to sit supplementary examination(s) to be held at a time to be determined by the Faculty Board of Examiners.

3.10.    A candidate who fails the supplementary examination(s) shall, on the recommendation of the Faculty Board of Examiners and approval by Senate, repeat the failed course(s) of the year provided that the candidate pays the prescribed fees for the respective course(s) and examination(s).

3.11.    A pass obtained by a candidate after sitting for supplementary examination(s) shall constitute only a pass of 50% in that particular course.

3.12.    A candidate, who presents for University examinations and fails in more than a half of the subjects will on the recommendation of the Faculty Board of Examiners, be permitted to retake the failed course(s), provided that the candidate shall pay all prescribed fees for the respective course(s) and examination(s).

3.13.    A candidate who is permitted to repeat part of the work of any year under clause (3.12) above and who in the examination for that part fails to attain a pass, subject to clause (3.9) above, shall on the recommendation of the Faculty Board of Examiners and approval by Senate, be discontinued. University Of Nairobi UoNBI Veterinary Medicine

3.14.    No candidate shall be allowed to register for a course on academic grounds more than twice.

1.       All courses shall be examined by Ordinary Examination during the academic year in which they are taught.

2.       Such Ordinary Examinations shall consist of continuous assessments and an end of semester examination(s) where applicable.

3.       Continuous Assessment shall consist of several evaluations based on suitable combinations of practicals, tutorials, assignments and written tests.

4.       Unless otherwise stated, end of year examinations will account for 70% of the total course marks whereas Continuous Assessment will account for 30%.

5.       Field training programmes shall be examined by continuous assessment and special reports.  Each of the two components will constitute 50% of the examination mark.

6.       The special project shall be examined through an oral presentation, which will constitute 30% of the mark while the written report will take 70% of the project examination mark.

7.       The pass mark for each examination shall be 40%.

8.       Marks shall be translated into letter grades as follows:-

          70 – 100%              –      A

          60 – 69%                –      B

          50 – 59%                –      C

          40 – 49%                –      D

          39% and below      –      E  Fail.

9.       Candidates may, on the recommendation of the Faculty Board of Examiners and approval by Senate, be allowed to sit for Special Examinations, at a time to be determined by the Faculty Board of Examiners.

10.    Candidates who fail the Ordinary or Special Examination may on recommendation of the Faculty Board sit for supplementary examination(s) in the failed course(s) before the beginning of the next academic year and after paying the appropriate examination fee.

11.    Candidates failing the above supplementary have to repeat the failed course(s) in the next academic year, provided the appropriate fee is paid.

12.    Candidates will be allowed to repeat failed course(s) only once on academic grounds failure to which they will be discontinued.

13.    Candidates may apply to the Dean for academic leave in between the years provided that the candidate’s stay in the university does not exceed a period of eight academic years.

Award of Degree

To qualify for the award of the degree, a candidate shall have passed all the prescribed courses.  The degree award and classification for the various options shall be based on the mean scores in all the four years.  The standard University of Nairobi rules shall be applied as follows:-

70% – 100%      –  First Class Honors

60% – 69%        –  Second Class Honors (Upper Division)

50% – 59%        –  Second Class Honors (Lower Division)

40% – 49%        –  Pass

A candidate may be exempted from some courses and credits transferred from an approved institution, subject to the following conditions:

1.       Request for exemptions shall be made in writing to the Academic Registrar, University of Nairobi at the time of admission and must be accompanied by officially endorsed supporting documents, including the syllabi for the relevant course(s).

2.       The University of Nairobi reserves the right to administer an appropriate test, through respective departments in order to determine whether exemption should be granted.

3.       Application for exemption shall be considered only after the payment of an exemption fee, as may be prescribed.

4.       The courses on which such exemptions are sought shall not exceed one third of the total units.

An applicant who wishes to be exempted from any course:

i)       Shall be required to send a formal application of exemption to the Academic Registrar through the Dean justifying his/her request and attaching relevant supporting documents.

ii)      May be required to sit an examination on the course he/she wishes to be exempted, set and administered by the respective department on behalf of the Faculty Board of Examiners.

iii)     Must have attained a minimum grade B (Credit) or equivalent in the course units for which exemption in applied.

Application for exemption shall be considered only after the applicant has paid exemption fee as may be decided by the Senate on recommendation by the Faculty Board.

No exemption shall be allowed in all clinical course(s) i.e. from 3rd year to 5th year except in some special circumstances as may be approved by Senate on recommendation by the Faculty Board.

The Bachelors of Veterinary Medicine degree programme is designed to train personnel with the requisite knowledge and skills to work as Veterinary Surgeons, animal scientists and nutritionists, Veterinary Pharmacists, Public Health Officers as well as epidemiologists among many other skills.

The Faculty of Veterinary Medicine has endeavoured to review the curriculum regularly in line with the University of Nairobi’s mission of producing high-level manpower. The revised programme has responded to the emerging needs by addressing animals in ASAL regions, emphasizing acquisition of practical skills including business and establishment of mentorship. This ensures that, the graduates are well equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to meet the expectations of the profession.

Goal and Objectives:

To train manpower with skills to meet all national needs in livestock production and health.

Specific Objectives

1.1    To train graduates equipped with skills to diagnose, treat and prevent livestock and wildlife diseases

1.2    To train graduates with skills to deal with all Public Health issues as relates to animals and their products

1.3    To equip graduates with skills and potential to serve in relevant tertiary educational and research institutions in Kenya, regionally and internationally.

1.4    To enhance adequately entrepreneurial skills among graduates to make them competitive in the world economy.

The BSc. degree in wildlife is designed to produce personnel with the requisite knowledge and skills to work in wildlife, fisheries, tourism, environment and related fields.  Wildlife, fisheries and tourism are key sectors in national economies.

In Kenya, tourism is one of the largest foreign exchange earners while fisheries alone earns the country more than five billion shillings in foreign currency.  Environmental management and conservation plays a major role in planning and sustainable development worldwide.  This requirement demands adequate capacity building in both personnel and technology.  The above sectors are expanding rapidly and so is the demand for the relevant skilled personnel.  In recognition of this demand, the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine together with Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) have teamed up to offer a hands-on, practical oriented training in these fields.  The combined resources of these two institutions in terms of manpower and facilities are best placed to provide this training. University Of Nairobi UoNBI Veterinary Medicine

Goal

The overall goal is to fill an existing gap in training of practically oriented skilled personnel to work in areas of wildlife, fisheries, tourism and environmental management and conservation.

Objectives

The specific objectives will be to train personnel with relevant wildlife skills in:

i)       Management and conservation (wildlife)

ii)      Fisheries management

iii)     Wetlands management and conservation

iv)     Tourism management

Environmental management as it relates to the above fields will underpin the training in these programmes.