BECE 2026: Guidelines For SHS School Selection Process to Know After Release of Exam Results
- The Ghana Education Service requires BECE candidates to select eight schools in total under its updated placement guidelines
- Schools are grouped into categories A to D, with specific rules on how many a candidate can choose from each category
- The CSSPS uses a tie-breaker system involving grade 1s, raw scores, and core subject performance to resolve placement disputes
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Ghana's Computerised School Selection and Placement System follows a structured process to place Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) graduates into secondary-cycle institutions across the country.
This 2026 process will mark a notable departure from previous practice. In past years, candidates chose their preferred senior high schools before sitting the BECE.
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The policy has now been revised so that students can first review their results and assess their performance before making school selections.
Candidates will also be required to select eight senior high schools in total, one more than the seven permitted last year.
Among those choices, they must include two Category 'A' schools, one with boarding facilities and the other a day school within their district.
The changes form part of broader efforts to improve the Computerised School Selection and Placement System and resolve recurring placement difficulties.
Secondary schools are grouped into categories A through D, covering a range of Senior High Schools, STEM schools, SHTS, and TVET institutions.
Category A allows candidates to pick only one school, category B allows no more than two, while all five choices can come from category C.
Candidates pursuing Technical and Vocational Education and Training follow the same category rules but must fill all five selections with TVET schools.
Cluster schools serve as fallback options within the same category. If a candidate's first choice is unavailable, the system automatically moves to the next option in sequence.
To be eligible for placement into any public secondary-cycle school, a candidate must hold a BECE certificate from either a public or private institution.
Foreign applicants may also apply but must follow a separate GES process.
How the CSSPS Places Candidates
The system evaluates each candidate based on their aggregate score, the programme they selected, available spaces, and their residential preference.
It checks whether a candidate's grades meet the entry requirement for their first-choice programme, then confirms whether space is available in their preferred boarding or day option.
If that slot is taken by candidates with stronger grades, the system proceeds to the next choice, continuing until a placement is found.
When too many candidates share identical grades and compete for the same limited spaces, the Computerised School Selection and Placement System applies a tie-breaker in three steps: first, the number of grade 1s; then raw scores from the best six subjects; and finally, performance in core subjects ranked in this order: English, Mathematics, Integrated Science, and Social Studies.
Candidates who are not placed automatically can use the self-placement option on the CSSPS portal, where available spaces are listed based on their aggregate score and school locations. Selections can be revised as many times as needed before enrolment.
Manual placement exists for three specific groups. Students with special needs are accommodated in schools that reserve vacancies for them.
Seminaries conduct their own entrance interviews and exams before submitting qualified candidates to GES for final placement.
Protocol placements, reserved for candidates connected to key school stakeholders, are submitted directly to GES by school heads for processing.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
