About 55,000 BECE candidates disqualified from SHS placement for failing English or Maths

About 565,000 candidates who sat the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) have qualified for placement into Senior High Schools (SHSs), according to the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) Secretariat.

The figure follows an analysis of the examination results by the CSSPS Secretariat as preparations begin for the placement process.

CSSPS Secretariat Coordinator, Sherif Sulemana, disclosed the figure in an interview with Joy FM, explaining that candidates must satisfy specific academic requirements to qualify for placement.

“Based on our analysis, we have about 565,000 qualified for placement this year,” he said.

Mr. Sulemana explained that candidates are required to pass both English Language and Mathematics to be eligible for placement.

He said a candidate who fails either of the two subjects would be disqualified from the placement process, regardless of their performance in other subjects.

“Those people have not failed in either English or Mathematics. So, you are disqualified from placement if you have failed in either English or Mathematics,” he stated.

He further clarified that candidates could still be deemed to have failed a subject even when they perform well in other areas, depending on the scores recorded.

“You find out somebody got one, somebody got ten over 100, somebody got, say, twelve, twenty over 100, and that qualifies as a failure,” he explained.

The CSSPS Secretariat estimates that approximately 55,000 candidates did not meet the requirements for placement.

“There are about 55,000,” Mr. Sulemana said when asked about the number of candidates who failed to qualify.

With about 620,000 candidates reported to have taken the 2026 BECE, the figures indicate that the majority are expected to proceed to the SHS placement process, while roughly 55,000 candidates will be excluded for failing to meet the required criteria.