The directives, issued in a circular dated September 2, 2025, to all TSC Sub-County Directors aim to reinforce the integrity and efficiency of national examination administration through the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC), acting as a detailed blueprint for all personnel involved.
Nomination process and eligibility criteria
To participate in the administration of these crucial national assessments, Heads of Institutions (HoIs) and teachers must be qualified, employed, and registered by the TSC. The nominated personnel are expected to demonstrate a high level of integrity and be free from any potential conflicts of interest.
The nomination process requires Sub-County Directors to identify, vet, and formally nominate centre managers, supervisors, and invigilators by September 26, 2025, utilising a specific online platform (cp2.knec.ac.ke).
After nomination, all identified personnel must register within the CP2 system to finalize their deployment for the 2025 examinations.
Stringent deployment rules and experience requirements
The guidelines include strict rules governing deployment to prevent conflicts of interest and ensure impartiality:
- A supervisor or invigilator is prohibited from being deployed to a school where they have served within the last three years.
Furthermore, personnel should not be deployed to centres where they possess a vested interest. To manage this, KNEC will distribute declaration forms via email to Sub-County Directors, who will then forward them to centre managers. Staff must declare their interest and submit these forms to KNEC.
Specific qualifications and teaching experience are mandated for each role and examination category:
- For KCSE supervisors and invigilators, candidates must be Secondary School teachers, holding a minimum of a Diploma in Education or higher, with a preference for senior teachers or Heads of Departments. They must be registered with TSC and possess a minimum of three years of teaching experience.
- KJSEA supervisors must be Secondary School teachers with a Diploma in Education or higher, or Primary/Junior School Teachers with at least three years of teaching experience. These supervisors must have prior experience supervising national examinations and assessments. Both KJSEA supervisors and invigilators must be registered with TSC and have three years of teaching experience
KPSEA supervisors and invigilators must be Primary School teachers, registered with TSC, and possess a minimum of three years of teaching experience.
TSC outlines responsibilities and invigilator ratios
Centre managers are crucial to the process, tasked with verifying the details and workstations of all supervisors and invigilators assigned to their centres. They are also required to take daily online attendance through the CP2 system from the rehearsal day.
At the end of each examination or assessment period, the online attendance registers must be downloaded, printed, signed by all involved officers, stamped by the centre manager, and submitted to KNEC. Both hosted and hosting centres must have their own centre managers, who are responsible for collecting and returning examination materials from the containers.
The guidelines specify precise ratios for supervision and invigilation:
- For the Stage-based pathway examinations (KPLEA and KILEA), there must be one invigilator for every ten learners. These invigilators are also required to sign declaration forms.
- For every two hundred (200) Candidates, one supervisor should be deployed, with an exception for hosted centres where no supervisor is deployed.
- Centres hosting both KJSEA and KPSEA candidates must be allocated independent supervisors if they meet a minimum requirement of thirty candidates.
- For every twenty candidates, one invigilator is to be deployed, with the exact number based on the total candidates in the hosting examination centre.
- Significantly, centres with candidates who use touch readers (blind) must ensure they have at least one invigilator conversant with braille.
The 2025 national examinations schedule
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KCSE: Rehearsal on October 21 with exams running from October 27 to November 21, 2025.
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KJSEA: Rehearsal on October 24 with exams from October 27 to November 3, 2025.
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KPLEA: Rehearsal on October 24 with exams from October 27 to October 30, 2025.
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KPSEA: Rehearsal on October 24 with exams from October 27 to October 29, 2025.
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KILEA: Rehearsal on October 24 with exams from October 28 to October 30, 2025.
KCSE supervisors will receive briefings weekly, and outgoing supervisors are expected to prepare handover notes for their successors. For KCSE oral and practical examination papers, supervisors only need to be present at the examination centre itself.
Sub-Counties that encounter challenges with recruitment or require assistance are advised to direct their inquiries to sl@knec.ac.ke.