FG Announces 16 as Minimum Age for University Admission
The Federal Government has officially set 16 years as the minimum age for admission into universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education across Nigeria.
This was announced by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, during the 2025 Policy Meeting of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) held on Tuesday in Abuja.
While declaring the meeting open, Dr. Alausa stated that the new age benchmark is non-negotiable and must be strictly adhered to by all institutions.
He noted that although 18 had previously been proposed, the government settled on 16 after extensive stakeholder engagement, balancing academic readiness with cognitive maturity.
The Minister added that any admission carried out outside the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS) would be deemed illegal and warned that both students and institutions attempting to manipulate age records to beat the policy would face sanctions.
However, he acknowledged that rare and justifiable exceptions may apply for gifted students or those with accelerated academic progress, provided there is proper documentation and validation.
Alausa also stressed that heads of institutions found to be circumventing the CAPS process or engaging in admission fraud would face prosecution under existing laws.
This new directive replaces the earlier 2024 policy, which proposed 18 as the minimum age, a decision that faced widespread criticism from education stakeholders before being reviewed.
