Masters of Arts in Political Science and Public Administration

• Final University Examinations shall be given at the end of every semester in each taught course unit; and each final examination shall be in the form of a three-hour written examination paper
• All examinations shall be governed by the following rules:
• Each course unit shall be graded out of one hundred marks (100)
• The written final examination shall account for seventy percent (70%) of all the marks in each course unit, while continuous assessment tests shall account for 30%.
• In every course unit taken, the pass mark shall be fifty percent (50), which shall be arrived at by adding the overall continuous coursework grade obtained in that course to the final end-of-semester grade.
• A candidate who fails in any examination in a specialized, core, or elective course unit taken at the end of a semester may re-sit that examination when it is next given during scheduled end-of semester examinations, and should he/she once again fail, may re-sit the examination one more time when it is next scheduled as part of the Universitys regular end-of-semester examination calendar, provided that he/she shall pay such fees as may be prescribed by the University in respect of such examination.
• A candidate who fails in any examination in an elective course unit may, at his/her own discretion, register in an alternative elective course unit, in lieu of re-sitting an examination in which he/she failed once or more than once; provided that he/she shall pay such registration and other fees as may be prescribed by the University in respect of such examination.
• In the event that a candidate re-sits the final examination in any course unit, the final grade shall be based entirely on the marks obtained in the final written examination, which shall be graded out of 100 marks; and the continuous coursework marks pertaining to that course unit shall not be considered. The pass obtained by re-sitting a course shall be recorded as 50%.
• Existing University and Faculty of Arts rules and regulations pertaining to conduct during actual examinations and to examination matters not specifically mentioned in these Regulations, shall apply.
• A student who, for good cause and supported with authenticated documentary evidence, fails to sit or complete an end-of-semester examination may be allowed to sit for the paper(s) concerned when the examination is next scheduled.
• A candidate who fails in the second resit or retake or fails to complete the course in the prescribed time shall on the recommendation of the Faculty Board and approval by Senate be discontinued.

The Thesis

• Topics for the M.A. Thesis shall be identified by candidates in
• consultation with their supervisors, subject to formal approval of the Department.
• The marking of the M.A. Thesis shall be governed by the examination regulations governing Masters degree theses at the University of Nairobi .

The Project

• Candidates shall be required to submit a written project report to the Department for examination two weeks before the end of the final semester of study.
• The project shall be graded independently out of 100 marks, distributed as follows: 70% for the project report and 30% for oral presentation.
• The pass mark shall be 50.
• A candidate who fails to obtain the pass mark in the project may on the recommendation of the Faculty Board of Arts and approval by Senate be allowed to resubmit the project for a maximum of two times.
• A pass obtained by re-submission of the project will be recorded as 50.
• A candidate who fails to obtain the pass mark in the project at the second re-submission of the project or fails to complete the course within the prescribed period shall on the recommendation of the Board of the Faculty of Arts and approval by Senate be discontinued

  Specialisation Areas

  The sub-disciplines from which students are required to take course units are:-

• Comparative Politics;
• International Relations;
• Political Economy;
• Political Sociology;
• Public Administration