By Felix Khanoba
The Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa, and the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Professor Segun Aina, have honoured outstanding candidates in the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), including the examination’s best performers and exceptional under-16 candidates.
At a ceremony in Abuja on Wednesday, Alausa commended the young candidates for their academic excellence, describing them as potential innovators capable of developing solutions to challenges facing Nigeria and the world.
The minister disclosed that only 108 candidates under the age of 16 had met the stipulated criteria for consideration for admission into tertiary institutions from the pool of candidates who sat the 2026 UTME.
He explained that the candidates had to meet stringent academic requirements, including scoring at least 320 out of 400 in the UTME, alongside the prescribed performance in their O’level examinations and a screening exercise to assess their maturity and psychological and emotional readiness for university education.
Alausa said the candidates represented an exceptional group, given the number of students who participated in the examination.
According to him, while 2,174,396 candidates sat for the examination, about 39,000 were below the age of 16.
He said only 391 candidates in the under-16 category achieved the required UTME score of 80 per cent, with further screening narrowing the number that qualified to 108.
Addressing the candidates, the minister said: “You represent the future of our country.”
He added that the young achievers had demonstrated exceptional abilities that deserved recognition and encouragement.
“You are the ones that will change Nigeria. And that will change the world with your innovations,” Alausa said.
The minister noted that the Federal Government’s policy restricting admission into tertiary institutions to candidates aged 16 and above was intended to ensure that students possessed the necessary maturity for higher education.
However, he said exceptional candidates who satisfied the established requirements could be considered under the prescribed process.
Alausa said the screening exercise had helped the authorities identify candidates whose intellectual abilities, confidence and readiness distinguished them from their peers.
He disclosed that JAMB Registrar, Aina, was impressed by the candidates’ performance during the screening.
“He was blown away with your level of intellect, your confidence, the way you spoke, and addressed all those screening questions,” the minister said.
He urged the candidates to look beyond obtaining university degrees and focus on developing ideas and innovations that could address pressing societal problems.
“We expect and we look forward for you to bring the people that will develop innovations, solutions, that will impact tens of millions of people in Nigeria and hundreds of millions of people in the world,” Alausa said.
The AUTHORITY reports that Awards were also presented to the best-performing candidates in the 2026 UTME and outstanding candidates in the under-16 category.
In a related development, JAMB has said it is reviewing its operational policies to improve transparency, strengthen public confidence and reduce the difficulties candidates face during registration, examinations and the admission process.
Aina made this known during an interaction with UTME candidates at the board’s Abuja Zonal Office as part of activities marking its 2026 Customer Week.
He said the policy adjustments were designed to improve candidates’ experiences without necessarily overhauling the board’s existing operational framework.
“All the policy optimisation that we are doing is centred around two things: building trust and reducing trauma,” Aina said.
The registrar explained that the board had improved the information available to candidates about their admission status, enabling them to follow the progress of their applications instead of being left uncertain by generic notifications.
“Building trust is increasing transparency. That is why now you can see the progress with your admission status. Instead of just seeing ‘not admitted’ or ‘admission in progress’ and just waiting and being nervous and being traumatised, we now have a situation where you can see the details,” he said.
Aina also disclosed that technology had enabled JAMB to make it easier for candidates to update their telephone numbers and email addresses when they lost access to their registered contact details.
He said the board was also working more closely with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to resolve legitimate discrepancies in candidates’ personal information while maintaining safeguards against identity manipulation.
The registrar, however, warned candidates against attempting to exploit the system to change their identities fraudulently.
“If you would like to change your entire name, we will keep track of you. And if you are trying to take advantage of the system, please get ready. You will be feeling the full weight of the law in due course,” he warned.
Aina said his administration was building on reforms introduced by previous leaderships, particularly those of his immediate predecessor, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, to improve the board’s operations and sustain confidence in the admission process.
“I inherited a fantastic institution. Credit to my predecessors, particularly my immediate past predecessor, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, who did a lot to sanitise the system even further and to adopt technology even further,” he said.
He stressed that JAMB’s responsibility extended beyond conducting the UTME to ensuring that the admission process was fair, transparent and based on merit.
“Don’t forget, we are popular for the exams, but the exam is not our only mandate. Our core, the exam is a means to an end. Our core is the admissions exercise itself,” Aina said.
He added that qualified candidates should be able to secure admission without relying on personal connections or influential individuals.
“The people we serve don’t need to know anybody to get admission. It is our job to stand and moderate the interaction between these candidates and the institutions, and make sure they get their rightful places in the universities,” he said.
The registrar further disclosed that JAMB had inaugurated a committee to examine the possibility of incorporating critical thinking and life skills into its examinations.
He clarified that the proposal remained under consideration and that no final decision had been taken on its adoption.
According to him, the committee would examine whether assessing candidates’ reasoning, decision-making and ability to apply knowledge to practical situations could strengthen the existing assessment framework.
Aina said the board would rely on the committee’s findings before deciding on the next steps.
