Thousands of anxious parents and students flooded the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) Hall in Accra following the release of the 2025 Senior High School (SHS) placement results. The national resolution centre turned into a scene of long queues and tense appeals as many families struggled with placement challenges.
According to the Ministry of Education, out of 603,328 candidates who sat for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), 590,309 qualified for placement.
However, 107,509—representing 18.2%—were not automatically placed in any of their chosen schools.
The Computerized School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) successfully placed 483,800 students, accounting for 82% of qualified candidates, with 248,038 (51.4%) being female. For those left out, the self-placement portal was introduced, but many parents expressed frustration over mismatched placements or schools far from their preferred locations.
“I came here to change the school that the system gave to my son,” said Daniel Lartey, one of the parents at GNAT Hall.
“Since we got here, the queue has been just overwhelming. I wish he attended a school closer to us, and particularly, we want a day school.”
Deputy Minister of Education, Dr. Clement Apaak, acknowledged the concerns during a monitoring visit to the centre, stressing that the challenges were largely due to competition for top-tier schools. “Not every student will get their first choice, especially in the top-tier schools where demand is high,” he said.
“But there are equally good schools available that can meet their educational needs. Our teams are on the ground to assist, and we are confident that the majority of cases will be resolved.”
He added that the October 18 reporting date was deliberately set to allow time for outstanding issues to be addressed.
Beyond individual frustrations, education analysts have pointed to systemic challenges. Kofi Asare, Executive Director of Africa Education Watch, explained on Citi FM that the issue lies not in limited capacity but in parents’ preference for a handful of schools.
“We have more spaces in schools than we actually need,” he said. “But the issue is that while the country has spaces in our secondary schools, the spaces do not meet the full expectations, tastes, and choices of parents.”
