Over 41,000 Underage Candidates Register for 2025 UTME Despite Age Limit
Despite a strict age requirement for university admission in Nigeria, over 41,000 candidates below the age of 16 have registered for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), according to data from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
As of Tuesday, real-time data from the JAMB registration dashboard showed that 41,027 underage candidates were among the 2.03 million individuals who signed up for the exam this year.
This development comes after the Federal Government reaffirmed its commitment to the age restriction for tertiary institution admissions. Dr. Tunji Alausa, the Minister of Education, recently reiterated that the minimum age for admission is 16 years and emphasized that this rule would be strictly enforced moving forward.
“Candidates younger than 16 will not be eligible for admission, except in cases where a student exhibits extraordinary academic talent,” Alausa explained.
JAMB also supported the minister’s stance, clarifying that underage candidates could only be considered for admission if they achieve exceptional academic performance, specifically scoring at least 80% in the UTME—equivalent to a score of 320 out of 400.
This clarification follows the reversal of a controversial 18-year age threshold previously set by former Education Minister Prof. Tahir Mamman. The reinstated 16-year age requirement has been largely welcomed by stakeholders in the education sector.
