International School of Kenya has secured seats for their 2008 graduating students in top international universities.

Of the 53 students who are due to graduate, 43 will take up places in the US, Britain, Canada, Switzerland and South Africa, months before the deadlines for entry.

The school's director, Aretha Williams, said that by end of April, 80 per cent of the class had been admitted to prestigious Ivy League universities. "It is the school's mission to ensure that each group furthers its education and future careers across the globe," she said.

The school follows the American system of education.

Every year, Kenya has had increasing pressure to absorb qualified candidates into public universities, leaving many with the option of private universities or joining foreign institutions.

The Ministry of Education said only 66,134 students out of more than 200,000 who sat their Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education exam last year will be admitted to public universities, private universities, tertiary colleges, polytechnics and foreign learning institutions.

Only 16,000 of these will be absorbed in the seven public universities, which have been admitting about 10,000 students annually.