Federal Government Reveals 108 Underage UTME Candidates Qualified

The Federal Government announced that 38,892 underage candidates who participated in the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) did not meet the admission requirements for Nigerian tertiary institutions. Out of approximately 39,000 underage candidates, only 108 were deemed eligible after a rigorous selection process.

Dr Tunji Alausa, the Minister of Education, made this announcement in Abuja while receiving the two highest-scoring candidates and six other outstanding underage candidates, as presented by Prof. Segun Aina, the Registrar of JAMB. A total of 2,244,149 candidates registered for the examination, with 2,174,396 actually sitting for it.

Candidates below the minimum admission age of 16 had to achieve a minimum UTME score of 320 out of 400, score at least 80 percent in post-UTME examinations, and pass a screening exercise. Ultimately, only 391 underage candidates met the UTME score requirement, with further assessments narrowing the eligible candidates to 108.

Alausa emphasized that the minimum age requirement aims to ensure maturity for university life.