WASSCE Aggregate Cut-Offs for Medicine and Law at Ghanaian Universities

How Ghana's Aggregate System Works

Ghanaian public universities admit students by aggregate score, built from your best six WASSCE subjects: the three core subjects (English Language, Core Mathematics and Integrated Science or Social Studies) plus three electives relevant to your chosen program. WAEC grades each subject A1 to F9, and each grade carries a point value from 1 to 9. Add the points from your best six subjects and you get your aggregate. A lower aggregate means a stronger result, since 1 is the best possible grade on each subject.

The general minimum aggregate for degree admission across Ghana's public universities is 24. Medicine and law sit far below that minimum because far more qualified applicants compete for far fewer places.

Medicine and Law Cut-Offs at KNUST

For the 2024/2025 admissions cycle, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) set an aggregate cut-off of 6 for both Human Biology (Medicine, MBChB) and Bachelor of Laws (LLB), according to KNUST's published cut-off list . Medicine also requires credit passes in Biology, Chemistry and Physics or Mathematics as electives, alongside the standard three core subjects, per KNUST's admission requirements .

Medicine and Law Cut-Offs at University of Ghana

The University of Ghana does not publish a consolidated programme-by-programme cut-off list the way KNUST does. Third-party compilations put LLB and MBChB cut-offs for recent cycles in the single digits, but these figures are unofficial: confirm the current requirement with the University of Ghana admissions office before you rely on it. Both programs still require credit passes in three core subjects: English Language, Core Mathematics and Integrated Science or Social Studies: plus three relevant elective subjects.

Why These Cut-Offs Sit So Far Below the General Minimum

Medicine and law take a small, fixed number of students each year against thousands of qualified applicants nationwide. Universities respond by raising the bar until the intake matches available lecture theatre, laboratory, clinical placement or moot court capacity. An aggregate of 6 means A1 in all six counted subjects, and an aggregate of 7 allows just one B2 among them: a single B3 already puts you at 8, above what these programs took in that cycle.

Other Highly Competitive Programs

Medicine and law are not the only programs with steep cut-offs. Pharmacy, dentistry and other health science programs at KNUST and University of Ghana also carry aggregates well below the general 24 minimum, though the exact figure varies by program and by cycle. If your target aggregate falls a point or two short of medicine or law, these related fields are worth checking as a realistic backup, since they still lead to health sector or legal-adjacent careers.

How to Check Current Cut-Offs

Cut-offs reset every admissions cycle based on how many students apply and how many places each university has that year. Before you apply, check the current cycle's cut-off list directly on your target university's admissions page and confirm subject-specific requirements with the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission or WAEC. A cut-off from a prior cycle is a guide, not a guarantee, so build your university shortlist around a range of aggregates rather than betting everything on one program at one cut-off.