Maseno University

Maseno University founded in 1991, is the only university on the globe that lies along the Equator (00). It is one of the original seven  universities in Kenya. It has a number of campuses namely; Main Campus situated in  Maseno Township along Kisumu-Busia road, 25 km from Kisumu City and approximately 400 km west of Nairobi the capital city of Kenya, Kisumu Campus, Odera Akang'o in Siaya County and the eCampus.

Maseno University currently has one  Campus,(Kisumu Campus). Maseno Main Campus is in Maseno Township 25km from Kisumu on the Busia road. The core activities and central administration of the University takes place on this Campus. The eCampus is one of the latest innovations by Maseno University to facilitate online delivery of high quality certificate, diploma and degree programmes to learners in various parts of the country, the East African region and beyond. All programmes offered at the eCampus are primarily delivered through the internet, with students taking online examinations at the end of each Semester. Kisumu Campus is within the Central Business District of Kisumu City and is exclusively served by a spacious parking yard situated directly opposite Kisumu Hotel (Maseno University).

The name "Maseno" was coined by Rev. J.J. Willis out of the name of a tree known in local dialects as "Oseno" or "Oluseno" that stood next to the spot where the first missionaries in the region erected their base.

Maseno University’s history begun with the merging of Maseno Government Training Institute (GTI) with Siriba Teacher’s Training College to form Maseno University College as a Constituent College of Moi University. This led to its subsequent gazetting in October 1990 crowning the two institutions’ several decades of meritorious existence. It became a full-fledged University 11 years later, in 2001.

The University offers undergraduate and post-graduate programs in different disciplines at the following faculties and schools:

School of Arts and Social Sciences
School of Education
School of Physical and Biological Science
School of Public Health and Community Development
School of Nursing
School of Development and Strategic Studies
School of Business and Economics
School of Medicine
School of Agriculture, Food Security and Environmental Sciences
School of Mathematics and Actuarial Science
School of Computing and Informatics
School of Planning & Architecture

Maseno is a Public University, established by an Act of Parliament in 1991. In 2000 it was elevated to a fully fledged University. The current Vice-Chancellor of the University is Professor Julius Omondi Nyabundi.

Alongside its academic programmes the University also manages enterprises such as the Kisumu Hotel and the University farm where it produces agricultural products which are used within the university and the surplus supplied to markets around.

Maseno University is a modern institution of higher learning set up to advance teaching, learning, research and development that responds to the emerging socio-economic as well as technological and innovation needs of Kenya and the Eastern African Region. According to the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Julius Omondi Nyabundi, Maseno University has embarked on a mission to develop and deliver academic programmes that not only respond to the needs of industry but also prepare workers for the knowledge economy, in line with the Vision 2030. The programmes offered by Maseno University (referred to as ‘With IT’ programmes) ensure that all graduates of Maseno are adequately exposed to a knowledge-base that enables them to live, learn and work in a multi-disciplinary setting where ICT is as much a resource for learning and working, as it is a discipline in its own right.

Currently, Maseno University has a total student enrolment of 21,000 registered at the Main Campus, Kisumu Campus. The Deputy Vice-Chancellor in charge of Academic Affairs, Prof. Mary J. Kipsat, indicates that this number is expected to grow significantly with the launch and expansion of the eCampus of Maseno University that offers academic programmes through the Internet and other modern technologies to all who qualify, regardless of their physical location. Maseno University is therefore on track in globalising University education and providing high quality life-long learning opportunities, a deviation from the tradition of delimiting admission to physical availability of bed and tuition space at the University.