The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has approved the admission of 85 underage candidates who will be below 16 years by September 2025, after what it described as a “rigorous and comprehensive screening” under its exceptional admission policy.
The Board’s Public Communication Adviser, Fabian Benjamin, said the decision was taken in line with global best practices, where underage admissions are treated as rare exceptions rather than the norm.
“The 85 candidates were adjudged qualified following meticulous evaluation and have been duly notified to proceed to their respective institutions to complete the admission process and print their individual JAMB admission letters,” Benjamin said.
In the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), 2,031,133 candidates applied for admission. Out of these, 41,027 sought consideration under the underage category.
JAMB explained that 599 of those scored at least 80 per cent in the UTME and were subjected to further scrutiny, including verification of school certificates and post-UTME performance.
At the end of the process, 182 candidates were shortlisted for the final stage of interviews and documentation, but only 85 met all requirements and were cleared.
The Board advised any of the 182 finalists who, for valid reasons, missed the last interview to submit a formal request through the JAMB Support Ticketing System under the category “2025 Underage Complaint”.
“Such complaints will be reviewed individually and treated strictly on merit,” JAMB assured.
Additionally, candidates who scored 320 and above in the UTME but were disqualified for failing to upload their O-Level results have been given a two-day grace, ending Wednesday, October 29, 2025, to complete the process and notify the Board through the same system.
Reiterating its stance on academic integrity, JAMB said its admission process will remain “credible, transparent, and inclusive, while upholding the standards of tertiary education in Nigeria.”
