Apply Now

COD Message

Dr. Olivia Adhiambo Njiri Orego, PhD

Chair of Department
I would like to welcome you to the Department of Biological Sciences, Chuka University which offers several degree programmes ranging from Bachelors to PhD in the areas of Biology (Botany & Zoology), Microbiology & Biotechnology, and Fisheries and Aquaculture. Our degree programmes are studied within the university or by hybrid online. These programmes foster a student-centered learning philosophy through lectures, group discussions, seminars, field trips, practical lessons, and research projects.

The department’s quality objectives include:

  1. Quality education and training to enable graduates contribute to sustainable national and global development.
  2. Generate and share research findings to solve societal problems and improve quality of human life.
  3. Enhance environmental conservation to promote sustainable human development.
  4. Utilize information communication technology to enhance efficiency of operations.
  5. Establish mutually beneficial partnerships to provide facilities, opportunities to provide facilities, opportunities and innovative ideas for sustainable study, research and outreach.
The Department is committed to realizing the Millennium Development Goals particularly in the areas of training, research and community outreach programmes in biological sciences. As a department, we are working towards growing into competitive research and learning institution in the Kenyan region, Africa and the world. The Department has produced a large number of postgraduate students who are well trained in biological sciences and have been absorbed in their relevant fields, locally and internationally.

Our academic staff members serve in different capacities within the public sector, which contributes greatly in the country’s development. Many of the academic staff members are external examiners for different universities and are members or reviewers of editorial boards of various refereed journals and institutions. Moreover, most of our staff members are also involved in different welfare roles within the country.

The department boasts of a variety of equipment including Digital light microscope, Binocular light microscope, microtome, Hematology analyzer and ELISA kit among others.
On 9th Feb, 2022 the Department of Biological Sciences of Chuka University received equipment worth 1.2 million (Euros 10,000) from Deutsche Gesellschaft Für International Zusammenarbeit (GIZ-Germany). The equipment were dispatched by the Coordinator of Programme Migration and Diaspora (PMD) Kenya, at the GIZ Centre for International Migration in Nairobi, Ms. Cythia Kamau.

The equipment included; i) a Leica DM750 compound microscope that is suitable for morphological identification of microscopic specimens ii) a Fenwick can which is used for extraction of nematode cysts from soil sample, iii) a set of five high quality sieves that are used for extraction of nematodes from soil samples and plant materials, and iv) a laptop and a printer.
The equipment were donated in support of Dr. James Maina Mwangi, a lecturer at the Department of Biological Sciences, who completed his PhD studies in Germany. GIZ donates start-up equipment to those who studied in Germany upon voluntary return to their home country. Dr. Mwangi graduated with a PhD in Agriculture (Plant Pathology) from University of Kassel-Germany in collaboration with Julius-Kühn Intitut-Brauschweig Germany (Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants).

The Department has collaborative links with the Tea Research Foundation of Kenya, Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), International Center of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS), Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) and National Museums of Kenya (NMK).

Our staff members are also involved in projects that benefit the community and improves the lives of many. We therefore welcome and encourage linkages and partnerships in the following areas: Microbiology, Biotechnology, Plant Pathology, Entomology, Parasitology, Aquatic Science, Biology of Conservation (Aquatic and Terrestrial), Physiology and Cellular Biology (plant and animal). Individuals and Institutions wishing to collaborate with the Department of Biological Sciences can contact us directly or any of our staff members.

I hereby invite you to visit our website to learn more about the available exciting opportunities in the Department of Biological Sciences at Chuka University as we head towards sustainable national and global development.