Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has disclosed that between 313,000 and 328,000 students applied for Category A Senior High Schools (SHSs), despite the schools having only about 76,000 available places.

This figure is more than half of the entire number of students on the CSSPS.

Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile on Saturday, Mr Iddrisu said the figures highlight the intense competition for a limited number of highly sought-after schools, amid continuing concerns over the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS).

About 55,000 students have been left without placements, prompting concerns from parents and students over their prospects of securing admission.

Mr Iddrisu acknowledged the difficulties but said the scale of the problem had been overstated.

“I admit that we have a problem as a country. I am not interested in dealing with the symptoms; I want to deal with the real problems,” he said.

According to the Minister, 604,000 students are currently on the placement system, with 527,000 already placed.

This represents about 87 per cent of students in the system, a figure Mr Iddrisu said could not be characterised as a failure.

He said there are still vacancies across the SHS system, but acknowledged that many of the available places may not be in schools preferred by students and their parents.

“I am assuring you that there are vacancies, but vacancies that students [and] parents may not prefer or may not desire because we all want quality education for our wards,” he said.

Mr Iddrisu said the situation is particularly pronounced among Category A schools, where demand substantially exceeds available capacity.

He said between 313,000 and 328,000 applicants sought places in Category A schools, against only 76,000 vacancies.

The Education Minister also outlined a change introduced to the CSSPS, which he said is intended to address some of the underlying problems with school selection.

He said students are now required to wait until their examination results have been determined and officially declared before applying for schools.

Under the approach, candidates can make their choices after knowing their academic performance and understanding their standing and suitability for particular schools.

Mr Iddrisu said the system still makes room for catchment areas and other considerations in the placement process.

He argued that knowing students' results before they make their choices should help create a more realistic alignment between their academic performance, school preferences and available places.

While admitting that the system faces challenges, Mr Iddrisu maintained that the government's priority is to address the underlying causes rather than simply manage the immediate backlog.

He said the figures show that the vast majority of students have already been placed, while the intense competition for Category A schools remains a major factor behind the difficulties facing the exercise.