This paper traces the development and current situations of higher education in China and Kenya. This paper calls for rethinking on how to address increasing demand for access and quality through creating a conducive environment for learning and researching for both students and faculties. The paper presents a comparative study where China has been used as an example of a country that experienced rapid growth in access to higher education and economy in the last two decades. As the higher education system in Kenya faces challenges of increased demand with limited spaces coupled with poor policies and lack of resources, China's higher education has been a success story of external policies, increased demand, funding and access to higher education. The trends imply that if the Kenyan Government can borrow a leaf from Chinese higher education, then leaders can better understand challenges and provide solutions to improve the higher education system in Kenya. A conceptual framework was drawn from educational policies in China to explain how Kenya can learn and address its own challenges of higher education. A documentary review method was used to collect data. Recommendations discussed in this paper provide important insights to policy-makers and educators in Kenya on how to reform higher education system to meet the current challenges.