Radiography Course in Kenya: List of Best Schools and Everything You Need to Know

Updated 26 October 2026

Radiography is one of the most practical health careers in Kenya. Radiographers run the X-ray, ultrasound, CT and MRI machines that doctors depend on to diagnose fractures, chest infections, tumours and pregnancy complications, and every county referral hospital needs them. If you want to train as one, your real choice is between a three-year diploma at the Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC) and a university degree, then a specialist higher diploma once you are working. This guide lists the schools that offer radiography in Kenya, the grades you need, how placement works and how you get registered after you qualify.

Where you can study radiography in Kenya

The table below is drawn from KMTC’s Department of Radiography and Imaging programme sheet (as at July 2025), the KUCCPS adverts for the KMTC March 2026 and September 2026 intakes, and the KUCCPS programme listing for the Bachelor of Radiography.

KMTC campuses offering the Diploma in Radiography and Imaging

KMTC is the biggest trainer of radiographers in the country, but the diploma is only run at selected campuses, and the list changes from intake to intake depending on where there is space and equipment. Here is what the two most recent KUCCPS adverts showed:

In practice that means the course is concentrated at the larger campuses attached to county and national referral hospitals, where students get clinical placements in working imaging departments. If you have a preferred town, check the campus list in the advert for the intake you are applying to rather than relying on an older list, because a campus that took radiography students last year may not be advertised this year.

Entry requirements

For the diploma, KMTC’s general rule is a KCSE mean grade of C plain with the right cluster subjects. The 2026 KUCCPS adverts list these subject minimums for Radiography and Imaging:

• English or Kiswahili: C
• Biology or Biological Sciences: C
• Physics or Physical Sciences: C
• Chemistry or Mathematics: C

KMTC’s own department sheet from July 2025 lists C minus in either Mathematics or Chemistry, so the advert for the intake you apply to is the version that counts. Physics matters more here than in most health courses, because radiography is built on radiation physics and equipment. Students who dropped Physics after Form Two will usually not qualify.

For the higher diplomas, you need a Diploma in Radiography or Medical Imaging Sciences (or its equivalent). Radiation Therapy also accepts a Diploma in Radiotherapy. KMTC’s general rule for higher diplomas adds at least two years of working experience after the basic diploma.

For the JKUAT degree, placement is competitive. The KUCCPS programme listing shows Bachelor of Radiography cut-offs of 43.325 points for KCSE 2023 and 43.127 for KCSE 2022, which puts it among the hardest health programmes to get into. See our JKUAT courses and cut-off points guide and the KUCCPS cluster 13 cut-off points for how these weighted points are worked out.

How to apply

Both the KMTC diploma and the JKUAT direct-entry degree are applied for through KUCCPS:

1. Log in to the KUCCPS student portal (students.kuccps.ac.ke) with your KCSE index number, year and KCPE details.
2. Pick the KMTC intake or the degree application window, and choose Radiography and Imaging with your preferred campuses.
3. Pay the application fee through the portal and keep the payment details. KUCCPS has let applicants who were not placed in an intake reapply at no extra cost using their last payment details.
4. Check your placement on the portal after the deadline, then follow the joining instructions from the campus.

KUCCPS also helps applicants at its offices at ACK Garden House on 1st Ngong Avenue in Nairobi, at KMTC campuses and at Huduma Centres, and its contact centre lines are 020 5137400 and 0713 924 444. Our KMTC intake guide covers the application steps and timelines in more detail, and our list of the best KMTC courses compares radiography with other diplomas.

What you study

The diploma combines classroom work with long clinical rotations. Expect anatomy and physiology, radiation physics, radiation protection, image production and processing, patient care, and positioning for general X-ray, plus exposure to ultrasound, fluoroscopy, CT and MRI. Specialised areas such as CT, MRI, ultrasound and radiation therapy are then taught properly in the two-year higher diplomas, which is why many radiographers go back to KMTC after a few years of work.

Registration after you qualify

Radiography is a regulated profession. The Radiographers Act, 2022 set up the Radiographers Board of Kenya to approve training, keep the register and license radiographers. To register, you need a qualification the Board recognises and at least one year of supervised work under a registered radiographer. Practising without registration is an offence.

In a January 2026 judgment, the High Court declared that the Board, not the Kenya Nuclear Regulatory Authority, is the body with power to register and license radiographers. It gave a three-month transition and ordered that the Board be constituted. Check with the Society of Radiography in Kenya for the current registration process before you apply. Facilities that operate X-ray equipment still need their own radiation licences from the Kenya Nuclear Regulatory Authority.

Careers and jobs

Qualified radiographers work in public hospitals, private hospitals and diagnostic centres, mission hospitals, cancer centres for radiation therapy, and equipment companies as application specialists. Counties, the national referral hospitals and KMTC itself advertise posts regularly. You can find current health and county jobs on JobinKenya, and our KMTC vacancies guide shows how public health-training posts are advertised.

Tips before you choose a school

• Confirm the campus actually runs radiography for your intake. Not every KMTC campus does.
• Ask about clinical placement. The best training happens in busy imaging departments, so campuses attached to big referral hospitals have an edge.
• If you miss the degree cut-off, the KMTC diploma plus the JKUAT upgrading degree is a common route to a bachelor’s later.
• Be wary of colleges that promise a radiography diploma without KUCCPS placement or Board-recognised accreditation. Your certificate must be one the Radiographers Board will accept for registration.

Frequently asked questions

Which is the best school for radiography in Kenya?

KMTC trains most diploma radiographers through its campuses attached to referral hospitals, while JKUAT offers the Bachelor of Radiography. The best choice depends on your KCSE points and where you can get good clinical placement.

What grade do I need to study radiography at KMTC?

A KCSE mean grade of C plain, with C in English or Kiswahili, Biology, Physics and Chemistry or Mathematics, according to the 2026 KUCCPS adverts.

How long is the radiography course?

The KMTC diploma takes three years. Higher diplomas in ultrasound, CT, MRI and radiation therapy take two years each. The JKUAT upgrading degree takes two and a half years.

Can I do radiography without Physics?

Usually not. Physics or Physical Sciences at C is a required subject for the KMTC diploma.

Who registers radiographers in Kenya?

The Radiographers Board of Kenya, set up under the Radiographers Act, 2022, and confirmed as the lawful regulator by the High Court in January 2026.

Sources: KMTC Department of Radiography and Imaging programme sheet (July 2025) and KMTC academic programmes page; KUCCPS adverts for the KMTC March 2026 and September 2026 intakes; KUCCPS programme listing for the Bachelor of Radiography; JKUAT Bachelor of Radiography (upgrading) page; Radiographers Act, 2022 and High Court Petition E600 of 2024 judgment (29 January 2026) on Kenya Law.