JAMB Age Policy: What Every Nigerian Student Must Know
MAJOR Bowen contends that the policy represents a battle against intellectual growth.
Education is not merely a privilege. It is not an indulgence. It is a basic human right, one recognized by international agreements, to which Nigeria has long agreed, stating that it should be free, compulsory, and equitable. Yet, in Nigeria, we persist in conducting a silent assault on our most gifted individuals.
In February 2025, the courts of this country confirmed what should have been evident all along: that the arbitrary ‘minimum age’ of 16 for university entry is unconstitutional. The ruling deemed the practice discriminatory, affirming that intelligence knows no age. However, in a typical display of arrogance, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has disregarded the courts, reinforcing the very policy that was deemed invalid.
It is completely outrageous for JAMB to seek a stay on the court’s ruling. How can JAMB act in such a manner? In a matter concerning children’s rights to education? This is not merely arrogance. JAMB’s behavior verges on institutional wrongdoing. The JAMB Board acts as though it is above the Constitution. It should be disbanded urgently. No institution, no matter how influential, surpasses the law. Concealing behind legal loopholes to deprive Nigerian youth of their right to quality education is irresponsible and inexcusable.
What has ensued is a ridiculous display, a farce presented as ‘policy.’ Children labeled “underage” are coerced into signing oaths as if they were criminals, classified as “exceptional,” and subsequently forced through a series of insurmountable hurdles: 280, then 320 out of 400, with almost perfect WAEC scores. It amounts to a war on precocity, a persecution of intelligence itself, as though genius were a crime to be restrained rather than a talent to be cultivated.
The statistics expose the policy’s flaws. Almost 40 percent of JAMB’s own applicants—around 800,000 out of two million—are technically ‘underage,’ and these individuals are not the underperformers. They frequently score the highest—those whose outstanding results JAMB once attempted to suppress, only to unveil when their excellence could no longer be concealed. Meanwhile, their older counterparts, who are supposedly ‘psychologically ready,’ falter at the obstacles: three-quarters of them failed to even achieve the 200 mark, dragging the national cut-off down to a dismal 150. If age determined academic readiness, the data would reflect that. It does not.
History, too, mocks JAMB’s rationale. The Imafidon family from Edo State, celebrated in Britain as the “smartest family,” has demonstrated to the world what can happen when genius is allowed to thrive. Exceling in advanced mathematics at nine. Entering Oxford at 13. A family of Nigerian heritage illustrating that brilliance does not wait for age. Globally, societies that celebrate precocious talent benefit from innovation. In Nigeria, we are determined to penalize it.
And the consequences are significant. By postponing admissions, we delay our most capable children’s entry into the global workforce, where employers often prefer graduates in their early twenties. What starts as bureaucratic inflexibility evolves into a lifelong disadvantage in employment, research, and innovation. This is not just poor policy; it amounts to national sabotage.
Nigeria must recognize this alarming truth: when the system prevents eager students from accessing education, it does not leave them unemployed; it pushes them directly into lucrative avenues of vice. Cyber fraud for the boys, exploitation for the girls. These are the alternative “industries” prospering in our country where classrooms are failing.
The unfortunate reality is that Nigeria has seen this situation before. From the initial years of independence, when our universities stood as symbols of African intellect, to the bleak times characterized by inconsistent policies and underfunding, the narrative of education in Nigeria has consistently been one of potential wasted due to bureaucratic hurdles. Today, we find ourselves repeating this pattern, restricting the very intellects that could save our nation.
It is important to state that no regulation should be considered untouchable. Education, which is the driving force behind national advancement, must not remain bound by outdated constraints. A compassionate system evolves; it does not stifle. Nigeria’s future depends not on how rigidly we uphold antiquated regulations but on how thoughtfully we nurture the talents of our youth.
JAMB and the Ministry of Education need to put an end to this intellectual segregation. At the very least, there should be a special admissions pathway for outstanding candidates who have demonstrated their preparedness, regardless of their age. Ideally, this policy should be completely abolished. Nigeria cannot afford to shut out its most gifted students from educational opportunities. To continue this way is to undermine the fundamental principle that education is a right, not merely a privilege. Free innovation from bureaucratic constraints. Allow brilliance to flourish. The country’s future relies on it.
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