ACCR-AGhana's Ministry of Education says Category A and some Category B senior high schools have reached full capacity, limiting options for thousands of candidates seeking changes to their placements following the release of the 2026 Computerised School Selection and Placement System results.

The announcement comes as large numbers of parents, guardians and candidates continue to gather at the GNAT Hall in Accra, which has been designated as the National Placement Resolution Centre, seeking assistance with school, programme and residential status concerns.

Hashmin Mohammed, Press Secretary and spokesperson for the Ministry of Education, said officials at the centre would be unable to grant requests for transfers to schools that had already exhausted their available places.

“There are some issues, unfortunately, we will not be able to resolve them,” Mohammed said.

“For instance, if you go to the Resolution Centre seeking placement in a Category A school or some Category B schools, we may be unable to assist because those schools are already full and are showing a red light.”

The pressure on the country's most sought after schools has emerged as one of the main challenges confronting this year's placement exercise.

Official figures show that 313,283 candidates selected Category A schools as their first choice, although institutions in that category declared only 76,417 vacancies.

That means demand for first choice places in Category A schools was more than four times the number of available spaces.

By comparison, Category B schools declared 250,366 vacancies, with 176,614 candidates selecting schools in that category as their first choice. Category C schools had 468,652 declared vacancies, while 123,577 candidates selected them as their first choice.

The Ministry said the figures demonstrate that Ghana does not face a general shortage of spaces in secondary education. Instead, candidates are heavily concentrated around a relatively small number of popular schools.

Across the system, 859,828 vacancies were declared, significantly more than the number of candidates seeking placement.

A total of 623,072 candidates sat the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination. Of those, 604,567 qualified for placement.

The Ministry said 527,932 candidates, representing 87.3 per cent of those who qualified, successfully secured places in senior high schools, senior high technical schools and technical and vocational institutions through the placement system.

The remaining 76,635 qualified candidates were not automatically placed, with the Ministry attributing much of the difficulty to competition for highly subscribed schools.

Candidates who were not automatically matched have been directed to use the self placement system, where they can choose from schools and programmes that still have vacancies.

The Ministry has urged parents and candidates to broaden their choices rather than concentrating exclusively on Category A and other heavily subscribed institutions.

The government has also brought 85 private senior high schools into the Free SHS programme for the 2026 academic year as part of efforts to expand the number of available placement options.

Candidates using self placement can consider participating private schools alongside public senior high schools, senior high technical schools and TVET institutions with available capacity.

Meanwhile, the National Placement Resolution Centre at GNAT Hall has continued to experience heavy congestion as families seek changes or clarification over placements.

Among the concerns being presented are requests to change schools, programmes of study and residential status, including requests involving boarding and day placements.

The Ministry said it was increasing the number of personnel available to handle complaints as officials attempt to reduce waiting times and address cases that can legitimately be resolved.

However, officials have stressed that reporting to the resolution centre does not guarantee that a candidate can be transferred to a preferred school.

Where a school has already reached its approved capacity, officials say the placement system will not permit additional candidates to be assigned to it.

The Ministry is now considering moving much of the complaints and resolution process online from 2027.

Under the proposed system, parents and candidates would be able to submit placement complaints and seek assistance through the CSSPS portal instead of travelling to physical resolution centres.

Officials say the change could reduce congestion such as that experienced at GNAT Hall and lower the cost and inconvenience faced by families travelling to Accra or regional centres for assistance.

The current placement exercise is expected to continue as candidates who were not automatically placed use the self placement portal and officials work through outstanding complaints.

The Ministry has also cautioned parents against paying individuals who claim they can secure placements in highly sought after schools.

Deputy Education Minister Clement Apaak said placement under the CSSPS was free and warned that there was no legitimate paid protocol arrangement through which parents could purchase places for their children.

Parents and candidates with genuine placement problems have been encouraged to seek assistance through the designated regional resolution centres before travelling to the national centre in Accra.

For candidates hoping to move into Category A or already full Category B schools, however, the Ministry says the options are now extremely limited.

Officials are instead encouraging affected candidates to consider institutions and programmes where vacancies remain available as the government works to complete the 2026 placement exercise.