The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), has pegged to 140 points, National Minimum Tolerable score for candidates to be admitted in Nigerian universities.

It also pegged the minimum requirements for admission into polytechnics and colleges of education to 100 and 100 respectively.

The JAMB Registrar, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, at the 2023 Policy Meeting of Tertiary Institutions in Abuja today June 24, said that all institutions must abide by this rule and must not go below the approved points.

He said that every tertiary institution must ensure its own minimum standard, especially as it relates to institutional screening and grading in the Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE), which must not be lower than 50 marks.

”All institutions must abide by this minimum point. This means that no institution can go below the standard.

”For the 15 private universities that demand between 120 and 130 as minimum points, note that the 140 is sacrosanct and must not be violated.

“This is because the system put in place will not recognise 139, so ensure you comply.”

Oloyede said that institutions must not collect more than N2,000 as screening fees from candidates.

Professor Oloyede announced that 557,626 candidates from 1.8 million applications have been admitted into tertiary institutions across the country in its 2022 admission processes.

According to him, the 2022 admission process is still ongoing due to opportunities given to some key players in the sector to conduct admissions.

The registrar, who discredited notions from the public that admissions were given by JAMB, said admission depended on the availability of candidates five o’level requirements as UTME was only meant for admission ranking.

”As at June 19, tertiary institutions have admitted 557,626 candidates but as we speak today, the admission is up to 600,000 as we target about 700,000. This is because admission is still ongoing.

”We hear about cut-off marks by JAMB but the truth is that not the best candidate who scored the highest mark in UTME that is the best candidate.

”Admission is based on the five o’level results that a candidate possesses because we only make use of UTME for admission ranking. JAMB has not initiated admissions since 2016,” he said.

Speaking on gaps in admission vacancies and why candidates were not admitted, Oloyede said rigidity of programme choice and mismatch of demand and supply were responsible.

He also listed lack of interest for existing vacancies and trail-candidates (No o’level results or awaiting results) as responsible for admission gaps in the tertiary institutions.

He, therefore, said that the onus lied with institutions to determine the National Minimum Tolerable UTME score, often called the ‘Cut-off marks’.

The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, David Adejo, urged the stakeholders to ensure fairness, transparency and accountability in the admission processes which determined the fate of millions of students.

Adejo called on admission stakeholders to ensure credibility in the process so that no candidate would be denied admission as well as no deserving candidate was given admission.

”The Federal Ministry of Education have resolved that the fundamental principle of the ministry is openness and this has been provided by JAMB through inclusiveness in the UTME.

”JAMB must ensure sanity and integrity of exams and admission must be based on agreed guidelines to deepen accountability, transparency and fairness.

”Criteria for admissions remained critical by JAMB and all institutions must abide by them as we need to stick to the approved quota for admission,” he said.

In a goodwill message, the Executive Secretary, National Universities commission (NUC), Professor Abubakar Rasheed commended the board on its role in ensuring sanity in the education sector.

Rasheed, represented by the Deputy Executive Secretary of the commission, Chris Maiyaki pledged the commission’s commitment with JAMB to fulfill its mandate.

He said that the policy meeting was a game changer moment for tertiary institutions to take the leading role in the education sector.

Also the Chairman of JAMB Equal Opportunity Group, Professor Peter Okebukola commended the JAMB board for the interest in the education of the visually impaired and other physically challenged candidates.

Okebukola said in the last several years, the board had processed admissions of 2,700 candidates who were visually impaired, those in the correctional centres and the down syndrome candidates.

He added that the Nigerian higher education system was the ‘move and shaker’ of African higher education sector, hence the need to get things right especially in the area of admission processes.

The policy meeting had in attendance representatives from the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Vice Chancellors of Universities and Rectors of Polytechnics.

Others are Provosts of Colleges of Education (COE), Registrars and Admission Officers of tertiary institutions, Heads of Federal Agencies, National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) and the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE). 

Source: NAN.