The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has presented conditions and processes for the admission of exceptional but underage candidates into Nigerian tertiary institutions.
The Nigerian government had pegged the minimum age for admissions into universities, polytechnics and colleges of education at 16, with the exception of gifted candidates.
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Gifted candidates, if proven, would be allowed into the universities before the age of 16.
Speaking at a recent virtual meeting with university vice-chancellors, JAMB Registrar, Is-haq Oloyede, listed the conditions for admission of underage candidates to include a minimum of 320 score in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), at least 80 per cent in post-UTME administered by the universities, and a minimum of 80 per cent in the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE).
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Mr Oloyede, a professor, said candidates in the faculty of science must also have Mathematics among their top-scoring subjects and English Language for candidates in the faculty of arts.
He said underage candidates must also undergo a dedicated post-UTME screening even in universities where the general post-UTME process has been suspended.
Mr Oloyede said the measures are intended to protect candidates by ensuring they are psychologically, emotionally, and socially prepared for the exposure and responsibilities of university life.
Only 599 of 41,000 qualify as gifted candidates
During this year’s UTME, 41,027 underage candidates registered as gifted students. They are part of the 1.9 million candidates who sat the Computer-Based Test (CBT) this year.
Only 17,025 or 0.88 per cent of the 1.9 million candidates scored above 300 in the UTME.
However, about 599 passed the initial benchmark for gifted candidates, JAMB’s subcommittee on underage admissions said.
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Presenting the report of the committee on 13 August, the chairperson, Taoheed Adeoja, said over 40,000 candidates had been disqualified for failing to meet the initial benchmark of 320 out of the 400 maximum obtainable score in the UTME.
Mr Adeoja said the 599 candidates who qualified as gifted will be screened between 22 and 26 September in three locations of Lagos, Abuja and Owerri.
He explained that the exercise would include written tests and oral interviews, and would go beyond academic ability, with candidates evaluated under the affective domain to test their readiness for the academic, social and emotional demands of higher education.
