2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Employment Outcomes Following Industrial Attachment in Kenya

Presented at International Division (INTL) Technical Session: Cultural Perspectives

Unemployment is a one of the main concerns for youth in Kenya (Hope, 2012). One of the programs put in place to address this concern is Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programs. These programs teach students technical trades and place them in industrial attachment programs in order to increase their employment opportunities and social mobility (Ohangwu et al., 2022). This study focuses on one TVET institution in particular: Tumaini Innovation Center in Eldoret, Kenya. This school offers certifications for street-connected youth in six different technical trades while also teaching classes in localized engineering education, entrepreneurship, life skills, and information and communication technology (Tumaini Innovation Center | Because Together We Can, n.d.). The purpose of this study is to determine the factors influencing a student’s employment outcome following graduation from a technical training program. Interviews were utilized as the main form of data collection and were conducted with current students, alumni, employers, and faculty from the Tumaini Innovation Center. The interviews focused on past and future attachment and employment experiences, connection to, assistance from, and experience with Tumaini, and dreams for future employment. Quantitative demographic data was also collected from students and alumni. The interview data was then analyzed using a mixed methods approach where trends were examined within individual sample groups and compared across groups. From this analysis, a framework was created describing students’ pathways following graduation. This framework outlines five main paths that students take. Upon completion of their industrial attachment, students may be employed by their attachment provider, gain employment from another company, pursue higher education, start their own business, or end up unemployed. The reasons for taking these pathways vary and will be discussed in more detail in the paper. Regardless of which pathway students ended up on, overwhelmingly positive experiences were reported at Tumaini, and students benefited socially, emotionally, and professionally. This paper contributes new perspectives on the potential for technical training and industrial attachment programs to address unemployment issues in Kenya and may inform similar challenges in other contexts.

Authors

Allison Biewenga http://orcid.org/0009-0004-4218-7640 Purdue University at West Lafayette (COE) [biography]

Allison Biewenga is a current student at Purdue University studying Industrial Engineering. She received a National Science Foundation grant to travel to Kenya and conduct research in partnership with Tumaini Innovation Center where she explored the outcomes of students following their technical education. She has had the opportunity to work on several research teams in the past focusing on human factors, non-technical skills, employment, and education.
Prof. Jennifer Deboer Purdue University [biography]

Jennifer DeBoer is currently Assistant Professor of Engineering Education at Purdue University. Her research focuses on international education systems, individual and social development, technology use and STEM learning, and educational environments for
Dr. Stephanie Claussen San Francisco State University [biography]

Stephanie Claussen is an Assistant Professor in the School of Engineering at San Francisco State University. She previously spent eight years as a Teaching Professor in the Engineering, Design, and Society Division and the Electrical Engineering Departments at the Colorado School of Mines. She holds a B.S. in electrical engineering from MIT and a M.S. and Ph.D in electrical engineering with a Ph.D. minor in education from Stanford University.
Dr. Kirsten A. Davis http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9929-5587 Purdue University [biography]

Kirsten Davis is an assistant professor in the School of Engineering Education at Purdue University. Her research explores the intentional design and assessment of global engineering programs, student development through experiential learning, and approaches for teaching and assessing systems thinking skills. Kirsten holds a B.S. in Engineering & Management from Clarkson University and an M.A.Ed. in Higher Education, M.S. in Systems Engineering, and Ph.D. in Engineering Education, all from Virginia Tech.
David Owuor Gicharu Tumaini Innovation Vocational Training Center [biography]

David Owuor Gicharu is the Head of Department (HOD) for welding and fabrication, the mathematics teacher, and HOD for sports, culture, and clubs in Tumaini Innovation Vocational training Center. At Tumaini, a Community-Based Organization, David works with street-connected children and teen mothers in Eldoret, Kenya. He joined Tumaini Innovation Vocational Training Center in the year 2019.
Gladys Jeptoo Kerebey Tumaini Innovation Vocational Training Center [biography]

_my name is Gladys the HOD class of food and beverage production
_Gladys joined the institution January 2020
_Gladys was appointed as the trainer under pastries
_Gladys is the Examination Officer at Tumaini Innovation Vocational Training centre

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