Kenya's sex for a degree scam

When the reality of not graduating downs on many a fun-loving campus girl, desperation sets in and they are willing to do anything for the grades, including having sex with lecturers, writes GARDY CHACHA

Being educated no doubt gives you a competitive edge for survival. Completing higher education is like creaming an arduously prepared cake for it to be ready for the market. The excitement and tempestuous feelings that inducts when one thinks about their graduation is palpable.

As days blend into nights and the clock ticks in an unending sequence, the thought of joining the corporate world as an intellectual becomes more real. What then happens when you are informed that you won’t graduate until a year later because you have to redo a unit you failed?

Desperation

Joan Mwikali’s class was scheduled to graduate last year in December. She, however, could not graduate because she had failed to attain the pass mark for a unit that was essential for her to attain the degree. She, therefore, had to wait for another graduation slated for mid this year, by which time she was expected to redo the unit.

She had no choice and patiently waited for second semester of this year. Joan couldn’t believe it when she was told she was facing a challenge in the same unit and couldn’t graduate again.

When she delved into the matter, she was told she hadn’t done one CAT (continuous assessment test) and she would have to wait until another semester so as to begin the course afresh.

However, her lecturer — a male — told her that even if she were to graduate, she wouldn’t “just graduate for free”. Caught between a rock and a hard place, she agreed to share a night with him for an ‘A’, which could guarantee her graduation and joining the job market that she had eagerly awaited.

The ‘lay for an A’ phenomenon is a reality in many institutions of higher learning as students become desperate to get the required papers to join the competitive job market. When a student is faced with a tacky prospect of achieving her dreams albeit in the wrong way, and there is no leeway provided for them to seek legal channels, then the vice is nurtured.

Caroline Makana found herself giving in to a lecturer’s request that he replaces her grades, which were mostly Ds, with As. She was in Third Year and wasn’t facing a snag from graduating, neither was she expected to redo a course, but her level of academic performance was exceptionally low. She needed a ‘boost’ if she was to attain at least a second class, upper division. It occurred to her that if she didn’t do something about it, her precious degree certificate would be dotted with Ds, which she figured would compromise her in the job market.

“A man is just a man: Having sex with one won’t kill. If he can exchange pleasure with As, that’s a bonus,” says the now Fourth Year student at a local university.

“It’s a rare gift God gave women and at times you’ve to use it to save face,” adds Caroline.

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