The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has approved the admission of 85 underage candidates who successfully passed its special screening process for exceptional entry into tertiary institutions.
In a statement on Monday, JAMB’s Head of Media, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, said the underage candidates, all below 16 years as of September 2025, were cleared after a rigorous, multi-stage evaluation process.
“After meticulous evaluation, 85 candidates who are adjudged to be qualified have been duly notified to proceed to their respective institutions to complete the admission process and print their individual JAMB admission letters,” Benjamin said.
He explained that the exceptional admission exercise followed a review of 599 candidates who scored at least 80% in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and applied for consideration under the special category. Following certificate verification and interviews, 85 were found qualified.
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Benjamin added that the policy was consistent with global best practices, “where such cases are treated as rare exceptions rather than the norm.”
JAMB advised any of the 182 finalists who missed the final interview to submit a formal complaint through its online ticketing platform for review on individual merit.
The Board reaffirmed its commitment to fairness and academic integrity in Nigeria’s tertiary admission process.
Earlier this month, JAMB had set 16 years as the minimum admission age, following a directive by the Ministry of Education, which proposed 18 years. The move sparked controversy and a legal challenge, prompting the creation of the exceptional admission screening for qualified underage students.