The Education Ministry has explained that the concentration of demand for Category A schools is a major factor behind challenges encountered during the 2026 Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) exercise.

Press Secretary to the Minister for Education, Hashmin Mohammed, said 313,283 candidates selected Category A schools as their first choice, despite only 76,417 vacancies being declared in that category.

Speaking on JoyNews’ The Pulse on Monday, September 7, 2026, Mr Mohammed said the overall placement system had declared 859,828 vacancies across schools nationwide.

He said the figure was significantly higher than the number of candidates who sat for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), but the difficulty arose because a large number of candidates were competing for a limited number of places in the most highly subscribed schools.

“The system, the CSSPS system declared a vacancy of 859,828. So if you look at the vacancy in the system, it is even far more than the number of candidates who sat for the exams.”

Mr Mohammed said schools such as Achimota School and Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School (Presec) continued to attract exceptionally high demand.

“The declared vacancy by the heads of the schools starts at 76,417 as against the number of students who showed interest in Category A schools this year alone, which is 313,283.”

Mr Mohammed explained that when candidates cannot secure their first-choice school because of competition, the CSSPS considers their subsequent choices.

He said candidates could therefore be placed in their second, third, fourth or fifth choices where they met the relevant placement requirements.

“So when you are faced with that challenge, of course, some students will not be able to be placed in their preferred school,” he said.

According to him, the system had operated within the choices submitted by candidates.

Mr Mohammed also rejected concerns that some candidates had been placed in schools they never selected.

He said the placement process had been expanded this year to allow candidates to select up to eight schools, providing the system with more options when processing placements.

“It is impossible for you to pass and then you will be allocated into a school you haven't chosen because that's why we expanded the choices.”

He urged anyone with concerns about an alleged placement outside their selected schools to verify the candidate’s original choices before concluding that the system had made an error.

Mr Mohammed also confirmed that candidates who obtained a score of nine in English Language or Mathematics are eligible to access the self-placement system.

The self-placement portal is now open to candidates who were not automatically matched, allowing eligible candidates to select from schools and programmes with available vacancies.

The 2026 CSSPS results were released on September 4, with 527,932 candidates successfully placed out of 604,567 qualified candidates, representing 87.3 percent.

The placement data show that 313,283 candidates selected Category A schools as their first choice, compared with 176,614 for Category B and 123,577 for Category C schools.

Category A schools declared 76,417 vacancies, while Category B schools had 250,366 and Category C schools had 468,652 vacancies.

The Ministry has established placement resolution centres at the regional and national levels to assist candidates and parents with placement-related concerns.

The self-placement process is also expected to provide an alternative pathway for candidates who did not secure automatic placement.