Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), disclosed that more than 11,553 underage candidates have already registered for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
Oloyede made the revelation while inspecting approved computer-based test centres in Lagos on Friday, adding that a total of 782,027 candidates have been registered in the last 10 days.
While addressing the situation, Oloyede explained that a new system had been introduced to track underage candidates, enabling the board to monitor the registration process more effectively. He noted that, on just one day alone, 443 underage candidates were registered.
He also acknowledged the growing trend of parents enrolling their children early for the UTME, despite the fact that many of these candidates are not yet of age to sit for the examination. The JAMB registrar emphasized the importance of identifying these underage registrants to ensure proper evaluation and, where applicable, allow gifted students to progress despite their age.
Furthermore, Oloyede shared that while the registration process has faced technical challenges, including delays due to system improvements, it remains on track. He confirmed that the goal was to reach over one million registrations by the end of the second week of the registration period.
