The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has said that the screening of the over 500 exceptional candidates below the age of 16, seeking admission into tertiary institutions for the 2025/2026 academic session will be conducted between September 22 and 26 by a special technical committee set up by JAMB.
Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede who who disclosed this noted that the screenings would hold in three states; Lagos, Abuja, and Owerri, with Lagos expected to host 397 candidates while Owerri and Abuja will host 136, and 66 candidates respectively.
According tohim, more than 40,000 of 41,027 underage candidates who sat for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) did not scale the first hurdle, adding that thee screening was to ensure that only exceptional and well-prepared underaged candidates gain admission.
“People have been doing it in other parts of the world. We are not reinventing the wheel” he said
Presenting its report on the planned assessment during the meeting, a sub-committee led by Prof. Taoheed Adedoja disclosed that candidates would face subject-specific tests followed by a brief oral interview.
The committee also resolved to request result details from the West African Examination Council (WAEC) to verify the eligibility of some shortlisted candidates before they appear for interviews.
Participants in the virtual meeting included heads of tertiary institutions, government agencies, civil society representatives, members of the Nigerian Academy of Education, and the principal of Federal Government Gifted Academy, Suleja.
It will be recalled that out of the 1.955 million candidates who sat for this year’s UTME nationwide, 599 scored above 300 but fell below the minimum admission age of 16, prompting the creation of the screening committee.
The initiative is designed to ensure that candidates admitted are mentally and psychologically prepared for the demands of higher education.
The Board is targeting only candidates who scored at least 320 in UTME (80%), achieve a minimum of 80% in post-UTME, and secure at least 80% (24/30 points) in a single WAEC or NECO sitting.
