I’ll not accept student with aggregate 37 to Category A SHS – MoE

The Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has registered displeasure over the computer placement of Basic Education Certificate Examination students with an aggregate of 37 and above to top-tier Senior High Schools (SHSs) or what is usually referred to as ‘Category A’ second-cycle schools.

Speaking on Thursday, September 25, 2025, Haruna Iddrisu described the computer placement of a BECE candidate with an aggregate of 35 or 37 into a Category A second-cycle school as unmeritorious.

Receiving a report from the PTA guidelines committee, he warned that strict action would be taken against anyone caught manipulating the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS).

“For instance, I would not accept a student with an aggregate of 37 going into a category A school. What would be your justification for that? If you hear that a student with an aggregate of 35 or 37 is placed in a category A school, does he belong there meritoriously? That is questionable,”  the Education Minister said.

The Tamale South Member of Parliament said that the Computerised School Selection and Placement System is fair and cannot be influenced by any authority, including himself or senior officials of the Ghana Education Service (GES).

“Let me assure you that placement of persons who pass the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) is ongoing. The GES Director-General sitting here has no access. I have no access.

The Deputy Minister has no access. No Deputy Director-General has access, in order to guarantee the meritorious application of it,” the Minister in Charge of Education, Honourable Haruna Iddrisu, noted.

He stated clearly that the Computerized School Placement System (CSSPS) places Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) candidates strictly on merit and not through favouritism.

Relatedly, the Ministry of Education (MoE) says it will seriously investigate any allegation of second-cycle school placement bribery in this year’s computer school placement of students who sat for the 2025 BECE.

The Education Ministry’s assurance follows a widely circulated social media post attributed to one Gertrude Adzo Borklo, alleging that placement into Aburi Girls’ Senior High School costs GHC1 5,000.

In a statement sighted by Pretertiary.com, it said the claim, unfortunately, appears to feed into a conspiratorial narrative to create the false impression that the computerized school placement is for sale.

“The Ministry views this allegation with the utmost seriousness and has initiated an immediate investigation into the matter. However, attempts to reach the author of the original post have proven unsuccessful, as her account messenger was deactivated shortly after the publication,” MoE stated.

The Ministry has therefore urged members of the public to report any such school placement sale or fraud incidents through the following dedicated hotlines: 054 154 8223 (Calls) 024 490 8957 (WhatsApp)

“Together, we can safeguard the integrity and transparency of Ghana’s school placement system a nd weed out unscrupulous people who seek to benefit unduly from this important national exercise,” it said in the statement dated September 25, 2025, signed by Deputy Minister for Education, Dr Clement Apaak.

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

According to the Ministry of Education, of the 483,800 BECE graduates who secured automatic second-cycle school placement, 234,783, representing 48.6% were boys, and 248,038, representing 51.4% were girls.

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

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.