Free SHS: 70 private SHSs opened for SHS/TVET placement – MoE

70 private Senior High Schools (private SHSs) are now open to accept placement of students through the computerised school placement system, the Deputy Minister for Education, Dr Clement Apaak has said.

Speaking at a press conference, the Education Minister said the inclusion of 70 private Senior High Schools (SHSs) under the Free Senior High School (Free SHS) programme is for a pilot program.

The Deputy Minister of Education, Dr. Clement Apaak, has highlighted a major expansion in the 2025 SHS placement exercise with the inclusion of 70 private Senior High Schools (SHSs) under the Free SHS pilot program.

Dr Clement Apaak explained that the move aims to provide more opportunities for prospective BECE graduates who may not secure places in oversubscribed public Category A second-cycle schools.

The Minister for Education urged students and parents to take advantage of the self-placement portal to select from second-cycle schools with available vacancies, including the newly added private institutions.

“This year, as part of the Free SHS Programme, we are piloting 70 private SHSs. At the time of school selection, only 21 private schools were available, but I am pleased to inform you that all 70 private schools are now accessible on the portal, providing more opportunities for students. In total, the placement program covers: 724 public SHSs/SHTSs, 233 TVIs, 70 private SHSs under the pilot Free SHS Programme,” he said.

The placement exercise, he said, covers 724 public Senior High Schools and Senior High Technical Schools, 233 Technical and Vocational Institutions (TVIs), and the 70 private Senior High Schools.

A total of 590,309 BECE candidates qualified for second-cycle school (SHS/TVET) placement. Out of this, 483,800 were placed automatically, while 107,000 secured schools through self-placement.

Of the 483,800 Basic Education Certificate Examination graduates who secured automatic second-cycle school placement, 234,783, representing 48.6% were boys, and 248,038, representing 51.4% were girls.

About 82 per cent (82%) of qualified students who sat for the 2025 edition of the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) were placed in their first-choice second-cycle schools.

According to Dr Clement Abas Apaak, 49 out of 70 private Senior High Schools (private SHSs) have been made available for self-placement at the Computerised School Selection and Placement System.

This year, a total of 603,328 candidates, comprising 297,250 males and 306,078 females, from nineteen thousand, five hundred and five (19,505) Junior High Schools (JHSs) entered for the school examination.

This includes seventy-two (72 ) candidates with visual impairment, two hundred and thirty-nine (239) with hearing impairment, and one hundred and sixty-one (161) candidates with other test accommodation needs.

The examination was conducted at two thousand, two hundred and thirty-seven (2,237 ) centres across the country. Out of the total number, two thousand, five hundred and twenty-six (2,526) candidates were absent.

The BECE for Private Candidates recorded a total entry figure of one thousand, three hundred and ninety (1,661) candidates. This was made up of eight hundred and fifty-eight (858) males and eight hundred and three (803 ) females.

Fifteen (15) centres, mostly in the regional capitals, were used for the BECE for Private Candidates. Out of the total number of candidates who entered for the examination, fifty-seven (57) were absent.