Only 108 of the roughly 39,000 candidates under 16 who sat the 2026 UTME have met the Federal Government’s conditions to be considered for admission, Minister of Education Dr Tunji Alausa said in Abuja on Wednesday, October 21, 2026. He disclosed the figure while receiving the highest-scoring underage candidates, who were presented to him by JAMB Registrar Prof. Segun Aina.
Set against the 2,174,396 candidates who actually wrote this year’s exam, the 108 come to about 0.005 per cent. The steeper figure sits inside the underage group itself. 391 of them scored 320 or more out of 400, which means close to three in every four of those high scorers still fell short at a later stage, whether at post-UTME, on their O’level results or at the final readiness screening.
| Registered for the 2026 UTME | 2,244,149 |
|---|---|
| Sat the exam | 2,174,396 |
| Under 16 who sat | About 39,000 |
| Under 16 who scored 320 or more | 391 |
| Cleared for admission consideration | 108 |
| Highest underage score | 372, Owoeye Daniella Jesudunsin |
| Announced | 21 October 2026, Abuja |
A 320 score only got them through the first gate
JAMB treats candidates below 16 as underage, and they can write the UTME but can’t be admitted through the normal route. To be considered as an exception, a candidate had to clear every one of the conditions below, with the last stage handled by the National Committee on Underage Admission outside the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS).
Scores
- At least 320 out of 400 in the UTMEThe entry point for any further consideration
- At least 80 per cent in the post-UTMESet by the institution the candidate applied to
O'level
- At least 80 per cent in O'level results24 out of 30 points, in a single sitting
- No combination of WAEC and NECO resultsBoth results can't be merged to meet the 80 per cent mark
- The subject requirements for the chosen courseSame course rules that apply to every other candidate
Screening
- A readiness assessmentPsychological, emotional and intellectual readiness, reviewed by the National Committee on Underage Admission outside CAPS
The single-sitting O’level rule is the one families tend to overlook, because a strong UTME score can’t make up for a WAEC result that needs a NECO paper to complete it. The readiness assessment is different again, since it isn’t about marks at all, so a candidate who sails through every exam can still be told to wait.
Why the minister says the age rule isn’t there to hold bright children back
Alausa presented plaques and certificates to eight top performers, led by Owoeye Daniella Jesudunsin with 372 and Enwere Kingsley Ikenna with 370. “You are the geniuses in our society,” he told them, and he urged them to see their abilities as a responsibility to the country.
He also explained why the minimum age stays in place. In his account, the rule isn’t meant to block gifted children but to make sure younger students can cope with university life, and academic performance on its own doesn’t show emotional readiness. He described the feedback from this year’s screening as encouraging, particularly on the candidates’ confidence and intellectual ability.
Planning a 2027 UTME for a child who’ll still be 15?
Neither JAMB nor the ministry has announced changes to these conditions for the next cycle, so plan around them as they stand. The 2027 UTME is also expected earlier than usual under the harmonised calendar, with the proposed dates in our 2027 UTME, NECO and WAEC timetable, which leaves less time to prepare for a 320-plus score. Our breakdown of the changes JAMB is planning for UTME 2027 covers what else may be different in the hall.
Be wary of anyone offering an underage admission that skips these stages. Any genuine offer must still show on CAPS before it’s accepted, and our guide to checking an admission on CAPS explains how to confirm it on JAMB’s official website.
For most families, the 108 figure is the honest yardstick to weigh against a child’s age. A 15-year-old who sits the 2027 UTME needs 320, an 80 per cent post-UTME, a single-sitting O’level at the same level and a readiness review, while the same child applying a year later, at 16, faces none of those extra conditions.
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