The Ministry of Education has clarified that the failure of some qualified BECE candidates to secure automatic placement into their preferred Senior High Schools is not due to a shortage of vacancies, but rather a mismatch between students’ choices and available spaces.
Deputy Minister for Education, Hon. Clement Abas Apaak, made the clarification in a press statement issued on September 7, explaining that although hundreds of thousands of vacancies are available nationwide, a significant number of candidates are competing for a relatively small number of places in Category A schools.
According to data from the Ministry, a total of 859,828 vacancies were declared across the secondary education system.
However, 313,283 candidates selected Category A schools as their first choice, against only 76,417 available vacancies in that category.
The figures contrast with Category B and Category C schools, where the number of available vacancies exceeds the number of first-choice requests.
Category B schools have 250,366 vacancies, compared with 176,614 first-choice requests, while Category C schools have 468,652 vacancies against 123,577 first-choice requests.
For private Senior High Schools and Senior High Technical Schools, the Ministry recorded 995 first-choice requests.
Hon. Abas Apaak said the figures demonstrate that the challenge confronting the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) is not a lack of space within the secondary education system.
“The comparison is instructive. While 313,283 candidates expressed a first preference for Category A schools, the declared vacancies in those schools stood at 76,417.”
He explained that the concentration of students’ preferences on a limited number of schools creates automatic placement challenges, even when significant vacancies remain available in other categories.
“The issue, therefore, is not simply the availability of spaces in our secondary education system. It is largely a mismatch between where vacancies exist and where candidates most strongly prefer to be placed,” he noted.
He further stressed that qualifying for secondary education does not automatically guarantee placement into a candidate’s preferred school or programme.
“This explains why a candidate may qualify for secondary education but not necessarily secure their preferred school or programme.”
To ease pressure on the placement system, the government has included 85 private Senior High Schools in the Free SHS programme for the 2026/27 academic year.
Candidates undertaking self-placement are being encouraged to consider available options in Category B and Category C schools, as well as the participating private schools.
The Ministry has also activated regional resolution centres to assist candidates and parents with placement-related concerns.
In Accra, GNAT Hall has been designated as the National Placement Resolution Centre.
The Ministry has stressed that the placement process is absolutely free and warned parents and candidates against paying money to individuals who claim they can secure placement for them.
Affected candidates are being urged to make use of the available school options and designated resolution centres to address their placement concerns.
Source: Starrfm.com.gh/Pamela Quayson
