Candidates below 16 years old who intend to sit the 2027 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) should confirm the age requirements before purchasing registration documents.
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) maintains a minimum-age framework for admission into Nigerian tertiary institutions, with special arrangements for exceptionally gifted candidates.
However, the board’s official FAQ still contains the age cut-off applicable to the 2025 admission cycle.
For that exercise, candidates were generally required to be 16 by September 30, 2025.
Can a 15-year-old write JAMB?
JAMB’s FAQ explains that candidates below the standard age threshold could participate in a trial mock examination.
It also provides an exceptional admission route for academically gifted underage candidates.
Under the published 2025 framework, such candidates were required to achieve at least 80 per cent in the UTME, Senior School Certificate Examination, Post-UTME and a special assessment.
Those requirements should not automatically be treated as the final conditions for 2027.
What happened to underage candidates in 2026?
Recent reporting indicates that JAMB conducted screening for exceptionally gifted underage candidates who scored at least 320 in the 2026 UTME.
The development demonstrates that the board continued to apply a special assessment process rather than automatically admitting all high-scoring underage candidates.
What should parents know?
Parents should distinguish eligibility to sit an examination from eligibility to secure admission.
A high UTME score does not automatically override age requirements or other admission conditions.
The precise 2027 cut-off date and exceptional-candidate procedures should be confirmed when JAMB releases its admission-year guidelines.