JAMB Explains Why Under-16 Candidates Can Sit UTME but Cannot Gain Admission
- JAMB clarified its policy on underage candidates in a video posted on its X account on Thursday, August 20, 2026
- The board said candidates below 16 can sit the UTME but face strict conditions before they can be considered for admission
- Underage candidates must score 80% across UTME, post-UTME, and O-level screening, and even that does not guarantee admission
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The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has explained that candidates below the age of 16 are permitted to write the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), but sitting the exam does not make them eligible for admission on its own.
The board made this clear in a video published on its official X account on Thursday, August 20, 2026, under its "JAMB Explained" series, titled "5 Frequently Asked Questions About Underage Admission."
Source: Twitter
Who Counts as an Underage Candidate
In the X video, JAMB defined an underage candidate as anyone who has not turned 16 on or before September 30 of the admission year. The board said the September 30 cut-off was set by the Federal Ministry of Education, not by JAMB itself. For the 2026 admission cycle, any candidate who will not be 16 by September 30, 2026, falls into the underage category.
"An underage candidate is someone less than 16 years on or before 30th of September of an admission year," the board said in the video.
The Conditions Underage Candidates Must Meet
While underage candidates may participate in the UTME, JAMB said they are not ordinarily considered for admission unless they qualify as exceptional candidates. To meet that threshold, an underage candidate must score at least 80 per cent across the UTME, post-UTME, and O-level screening combined.
"An underage candidate must score 80 per cent in UTME, post-UTME and O-level screening to be eligible for admission," JAMB said.
Even after clearing that bar, the board warned that admission is not automatic. The final decision rests entirely with the institution the candidate applied to.
"Please note that your admission is solely dependent on the choice of your institution," the board said.
The clarification is especially important for candidates who will not yet be 16 by the end of September 2026. Such candidates can write the UTME without any restriction, but they must understand that a good UTME score alone will not secure them a place in any Nigerian tertiary institution.
JAMB: Courses candidates who scored 140-180 can choose
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that for candidates who scored between 140 and 180 in the UTME, several programmes remain available across science, arts and commercial disciplines.
The candidates may only have to make compromises on institutions of choice or preferred courses of study.
Source: Legit.ng
