The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has provided clarification on the exclusion of Kareem Kaamilah Omolarami, an underage candidate who scored 371 in the 2025 UTME, from its final vetting process for minors.
According to JAMB’s communications advisor, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, the exclusion was not due to bias or administrative error but was in line with established policy and procedural requirements.
The Federal Ministry of Education mandates a minimum entry age of 16 for tertiary institutions to ensure mental readiness for higher education. However, a special vetting framework introduced in 2025 allows exceptional candidates below that age to be considered under stringent academic and psychological assessments.
Out of 41,027 underage candidates who sat for the 2025 UTME, only 176 qualified for the advanced vetting stages. JAMB confirmed that Omolarami, who applied to Nile University, successfully passed the first two of four screening phases but was reported absent for the institution’s internal screening, disqualifying her from the final stage.
The vetting process includes meeting a UTME score of at least 320, attaining 80% in the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE), and achieving 80% in the university’s internal screening before proceeding to JAMB’s final panel interview.
JAMB reiterated that Omolarami’s ineligibility stemmed solely from her non-participation in the internal screening conducted by Nile University. The board emphasized that the process was transparent and consistent with its Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS), which ensures fairness and eliminates undue human interference.
The board also disclosed that the results of 84 underage candidates who successfully completed all screening stages are being processed for transmission to their respective institutions for admission finalization.
