The Registrar of JAMB, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, revealed during a policy meeting in Abuja that some Nigerian universities have been admitting students below the legal age limit of 18, with instances of admissions as young as 10 years old.

He specifically mentioned universities like UNILAG and OAU, which have a minimum age requirement of 16 years.

Additionally, Oloyede shared a case where a candidate applied for a master’s degree in a German university, only to find out that she had graduated from a Nigerian university at the age of 15.

This highlights a significant discrepancy and potential misuse of age criteria in admissions within Nigerian tertiary institutions.

He said: “Whereas 18 years is the issue, but UNILAG, OAU will not accept anybody who is not 16. Some of you will admit even 10. Look at this case, underage admission, a case of a university in Germany. A candidate applied for a master’s degree at a university in Germany. She then applied for the Erasmus Scholarship programme, which is an EU program. She applied for a postgraduate scholarship.

“The country found it strange that a candidate was born in 2007 and on her passport, she started university when she was 12 years old. The selection committee contacted Nigeria to confirm indeed if the candidate studied at the university and graduated at the age of 15 in Nigeria.

“The EU was asking us whether this is possible at that young age. And you know the implication? I can bet with you in the next two to three years, they will tighten the issue. Graduates of Nigerian universities will have to suffer one humiliation or the other.

“We found that (JAMB) never admitted the candidate because she was underage. The university admitted and registered the candidate. I couldn’t respond to the EU because I was embarrassed. I didn’t know what to write.

“Ignorantly, the vice-chancellor confirmed that the student attended the school but that they weren’t the VC at that time.”