Over 41,000 underage candidates were among the 2.03 million individuals who registered for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), according to real-time data from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) as of Tuesday.

The Board’s registration dashboard revealed that 41,027 candidates below the approved age of 16 had signed up for the nationwide exam. Additionally, JAMB’s official website reported 62 cases of examination malpractice recorded so far.

This development comes on the heels of the Education Minister, Dr. Tunji Alausa, reaffirming the minimum age requirement for admission into tertiary institutions as 16 years. He stressed that candidates below this threshold would not be eligible for admission, except in rare cases where exceptional academic ability is demonstrated.

In line with this directive, JAMB clarified that underage candidates may only be considered for admission if they score at least 80%—that is, 320 out of 400—in the UTME. This policy shift follows the reversal of the previous 18-year benchmark introduced by former Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman. The return to the 16-year minimum has received broad support from stakeholders across the education sector.

Speaking at a high-level meeting with Chief External Examiners, Technical Advisors, and the Equal Opportunity Group, JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, reaffirmed the Board’s position: 16 remains the standard, but underage admissions will be permitted strictly under exceptional circumstances.

Meanwhile, in a bold move to tackle exam malpractice, the Minister of Education has directed both the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO) to fully transition to Computer-Based Testing (CBT). By November 2025, all objective tests must be administered via CBT, with both objective and essay components expected to go fully digital by the May/June 2026 exam season.