Listen to This Article Enhance your reading experience by listening to this article.

The Public Service Commission (PSC) plays a vital role in recruiting and placing human resources in government institutions, including deputy vice-chancellors and vice-chancellors (VCs) of public universities. Previously, university councils handled this responsibility, but taken up by PSC, the expansion of public universities and government departments has overwhelmed the agency, highlighted inefficiencies and raised concerns about its ability to meet the unique needs of higher education institutions.

The recruitment challenges begin at the PSC registry, which serves as the first point of contact for applications. Despite being ISO 9001:2015-certified, the registry suffers from manual processes and chronic understaffing. Although the PSC has an online application system, it still insists on receiving hard-copy applications, leading to errors such as applicants’ names being omitted from the long list, which is meant to track all candidates. This results in frustration for candidates, particularly those who do not receive formal acknowledgement of their submissions.

The shortlisting stage is one that relies on the long list, where, unfortunately, the consequences of registry errors manifest. Missing names mean fewer qualified candidates advance, reducing the overall quality and quantity of applicants. Additionally, the criteria for shortlisting candidates for high-ranking university positions remain unclear. While experience as a dean or director is required for deputy vice-chancellor (DVC) roles, and prior DVC experience is expected for VC roles, there have been instances where underqualified individuals have made the shortlist. These lapses suggest weaknesses in the PSC’s due diligence process. The absence of thorough background checks allows candidates with questionable qualifications to bypass more qualified applicants. To restore credibility, the PSC needs to implement strict, transparent criteria and conduct more rigorous background checks. Improving the shortlisting process is essential to ensuring that only the best candidates are considered.

The final stage — interviews — also have notable weaknesses, particularly in the composition of the panel. The panel often lacks former university leaders, such as past VCs, whose experience is crucial for assessing candidates’ leadership potential and strategic vision. Additionally, the absence of professors, the highest academic rank, undermines the academic integrity of the evaluations. Professors bring invaluable perspectives on scholarly contributions and academic culture, making their presence essential on the panel. When professors are not included, the panel may fail to effectively evaluate candidates in terms of both academic and managerial qualifications. To address this, the PSC should ensure the inclusion of at least one former VC and a relevant professor on the panel. This would enhance the panel’s ability to assess candidates comprehensively, ensuring that both academic standards and leadership qualities are thoroughly evaluated.

A significant issue with PSC’s recruitment process is the lengthy timeline, with delays sometimes extending up to two years from application submission to final appointment. These extended delays create uncertainty for candidates and leave institutions in a prolonged state of limbo, negatively impacting governance and operations. Prolonged recruitment processes also open the door to corruption, allowing room for favouritism or backdoor dealings, which damages public trust in the PSC’s ability to conduct fair and transparent recruitment. To improve efficiency and restore transparency, the PSC must streamline its recruitment timelines by setting clear deadlines for each stage of the process — from application review to final appointment.

Given the challenges the PSC faces, I, as a university education expert, vouch for the idea of returning the responsibility of recruiting university leadership to individual university councils. University councils are better equipped to address the specific needs of their institutions.

— The writer is a Professor of physical chemistry at the University of Eldoret-