The Federal Government has fixed 16 years as the official age for admission into Nigerian universities, with 150 as the minimum score for the 2025 UTME admission.
This was announced on Tuesday at the 2025 policy meeting of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, held in Abuja. The meeting was attended by vice-chancellors and heads of tertiary institutions across the country.
Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, said the government had to give a clear direction on the age limit to stop confusion. He explained that 16 is now the approved age and all schools must follow the rule.
“The entry age for admission into tertiary institutions is now officially pegged at 16 years,” the minister said. “Sixteen years of age for admission is non-negotiable. Institutions are hereby directed to ensure strict compliance.”
Alausa also said that the ministry will allow exceptions only in rare cases for gifted children. “However, this must be demonstrated and documented, and it must be justified. The ministry is firm in its resolve, and those attempting to circumvent this policy by altering age records will be sanctioned accordingly.”
The new rule follows a court case in Delta State last year that stopped JAMB from enforcing an 18-year age limit set under former Minister of Education, Prof Tahir Mamman. After the court ruling and Mamman’s exit, Alausa reversed the decision.
Also at the meeting, JAMB and the heads of universities agreed that no student will be admitted into any university in Nigeria with a UTME score below 150.
Though some schools like the University of Ibadan, University of Lagos, and Pan-Atlantic University have set their own cut-off mark at 200, the national minimum score remains 150.
JAMB Registrar, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, said while some new private universities wanted 120 as their benchmark, the board did not approve it. He supported 160 as a fair cut-off, but institutions finally agreed on 150.
The minister said the new rules on age and score would help maintain standards and fairness in the admission process.
