Under-16 Candidates Can Sit UTME, But Admission Comes With Tough Conditions

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has clarified an issue that has continued to generate confusion among parents, students and prospective University applicants: why candidates who are below 16 years of age can sit for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), yet may not be eligible for admission into tertiary Institutions.

The clarification is particularly important as Institutions prepare for the 2026/2027 admission exercise, with JAMB maintaining that the minimum age for admission into tertiary institutions remains 16 years.

According to JAMB’s official 2026 UTME training manual, candidates who will not be at least 16 years old by September 30, 2026 are generally not eligible to be considered for admission. However, the Board provides an exceptional pathway for exceptionally performing underage candidates who satisfy a rigorous assessment process.

Why can an under-16 candidate write UTME?

One of the major points of confusion is the assumption that eligibility to register for or sit the UTME automatically means eligibility for admission.

JAMB has explained that this is not the case.

A candidate below 16 can participate in the UTME, but such a candidate is automatically classified as an underage candidate. Sitting for the examination therefore does not remove the minimum-age requirement for admission.

Global Mirror News gathered that the distinction is deliberate: the UTME is an examination used to assess candidates seeking tertiary education, while admission eligibility is determined separately under the rules governing tertiary institutions and the Federal Government’s admission policy.

JAMB’s current position is that the minimum age for admission remains 16. Its admission portal also reflects the 2026 policy position that candidates must be at least 16 years old for admission into tertiary institutions.

What happens to candidates who are below 16?

For the 2026 admission exercise, a candidate who is below 16 years on or before September 30, 2026, is regarded as underage.

Such candidates are not automatically disqualified from writing UTME, but they cannot expect a conventional admission simply because they obtained a good UTME score.

Instead, they have to qualify under JAMB’s exceptional candidate arrangement.

The Board’s 2026 manual states that under-16 candidates seeking a waiver must undergo an intensive evaluation to determine whether they are academically and otherwise suitable for admission.

The 80 per cent rule

For an underage candidate to be considered under the exceptional pathway, JAMB has set a significantly higher academic bar.

The candidate must attain at least 80 per cent in each of the required assessment categories, including the UTME, post-UTME and Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE), as well as the exceptional candidate assessment.

In practical terms, this means that simply scoring above the general UTME cut-off mark is nowhere near sufficient for an under-16 candidate seeking admission.

JAMB’s 2026 guidelines specifically provide for a minimum of 80 per cent in UTME/A’Level, Post-UTME, SSCE and the exceptional candidate assessment.

This is consistent with JAMB’s earlier policy, under which exceptionally gifted under-16 candidates were subjected to stringent requirements before admission consideration. In 2025, for instance, the Board required exceptional candidates to achieve at least 320 out of 400 in UTME, equivalent to 80 per cent, alongside strong performance in post-UTME and SSCE and an interview.

Does scoring 80 per cent guarantee admission?

No.

This is another important distinction parents and candidates need to understand.

Meeting the exceptional-candidate benchmark does not mean that JAMB automatically awards admission.

Rather, it means that the candidate has crossed the required academic threshold and can proceed to the next stage of consideration.

JAMB’s clarification indicates that admission remains dependent on the candidate’s institution of choice and its admission process.

In other words, an underage candidate could meet the required academic standard and still have to undergo additional screening by the chosen institution.

Why is the age limit important?

The age policy is not simply about preventing young people from writing examinations.

The Federal Government’s policy recognises that tertiary education requires a certain level of academic, emotional and psychological maturity.

JAMB has previously expressed concern about the practice of pushing very young children into university environments before they are sufficiently prepared for the demands of tertiary education.

The policy therefore seeks to strike a balance between recognising exceptionally gifted young Nigerians and ensuring that children are not unnecessarily rushed into higher education.

Exceptional candidates are treated differently

The existence of an exceptional pathway means the policy is not an absolute barrier for every child below 16.

Rather, it creates a narrow window for candidates who can demonstrate exceptional academic ability and satisfy the additional assessment requirements.

This is important because some young Nigerians may complete secondary education unusually early or demonstrate exceptional intellectual ability.

However, JAMB’s position makes it clear that exceptional academic ability must be demonstrated, not merely claimed by parents or candidates.

The Board’s previous screening exercise illustrates how selective the process can be. In 2025, JAMB screened 176 exceptional underage candidates after hundreds of candidates had been identified for further assessment.

What under-16 candidates and parents should know

For parents whose children are preparing for UTME, the message from JAMB is straightforward:

Writing UTME is not the same thing as being eligible for admission.

A candidate may be permitted to take the examination while still being classified as underage. If the candidate has not attained 16 by the September 30 cut-off date, admission consideration is subject to the exceptional-candidate rules.

Parents should therefore avoid assuming that registration for UTME automatically means their child can proceed to university immediately after obtaining the required UTME score.

They should also ensure that candidates’ age and biodata information are accurate because JAMB’s 2026 registration guidelines place considerable emphasis on the integrity of candidates’ biodata. The Board has warned that changes to previously supplied biodata are subject to strict procedures.

What is the current general admission benchmark?

The age requirement should also not be confused with the minimum admission score.

For the 2026 admission exercise, the JAMB Policy Meeting approved minimum tolerable scores of 150 for universities and Colleges of Nursing, while 100 was approved for polytechnics, monotechnics, colleges of agriculture, colleges of education and Innovation Enterprise Institutions.

However, these are minimum tolerable scores and do not mean every candidate who reaches the score will automatically secure admission. Institutions may set higher requirements depending on their programmes and admission policies.

The bottom line

For the 2026 admission exercise, the rule can be summarised simply:

A candidate below 16 may sit for UTME, but being allowed to write the examination does not automatically make the candidate eligible for admission.

Candidates who will be at least 16 by September 30, 2026, are generally eligible to be considered for admission, subject to other requirements.

Those below 16 fall into the underage category and must meet the much more demanding requirements for exceptional consideration, including the required 80 per cent performance threshold across the specified assessments.

Even after meeting those requirements, admission is still subject to the screening and decision of the candidate’s chosen institution.

Global Mirror News therefore advises parents and prospective candidates to distinguish carefully between UTME participation, admission eligibility and actual admission, as confusing the three could lead to unrealistic expectations during the 2026/2027 admission process.

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