JAMB insists on no uniform cut off marks for admission

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board JAMB has said there is no uniform minimum national Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination UTME, Score for Admissions into Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of Education in Nigeria.

The Board also said UTME score is not the sole determinant of placement of candidates into tertiary institutions.

“No uniform minimum UTME score (cut -off) for all Universities, Polytechnics or Colleges of Education in Nigeria; each Institution determines and submits to JAMB its minimum UTME score; after having analyzed the UTME performances of its applicants against its available quota”.

According to the Registrar of the Board, Prof Ishaq Oloyede said for the 2020 admissions into Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, University of Ibadan, Covenant University, Ota, University of Lagos and University of Benin, no candidate with a UTME score below 200 will be considered for admission into the universities.

“No candidate with a score  less than 180 can be admitted into many of the universities including, the Lagos State University(190); Afe Babalola University(180);Nigerian Army University, Biu (180);University of Jos (180); University of Abuja (180); Redeemers University(180) University of Ilorin (180); Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria (180), Bayero University Kano(180); Alex Ekwueme University(180) and PAMO University of Medical sciences, Port Hacourt(180)”

“The undue attention to the so-called national minimum UTME score (UTME cut-off point) is a major source of failure of many ill-informed candidates who assumed that they have finally attained the benchmark having achieved the so called minimum national score or “cut off point’ for admission” he added.

Prof. Oloyede further stated that for Polytechnics, no candidate with a UTME score of 199 is admissible into the School of Orthopedic Cast Technology, Ilorin, which has set 200 as its minimum UTME score

“Just as the Federal Polytechnic Nekede, Imo State has set a minimum UTME score of 180, Airforce Institute of Technology, Kaduna (170) and Abdu Gusau Polytechnic, Talata Mafara, Zamfara State (160)”.

The Registrar further said decisions at the annual Policy Meeting on Admission does not reduce the minimum prescription of the institutions except the few institutions whose submitted minimum UTME- scores fall below what the Policy Meeting considers as the minimum score acceptable.

“UTME score is just one of the two or three scores that are generally addyed together to obtain the eventual aggregate score and ranking of the candidates”.

Oloyede pointed that there are cases of candidates with UTME scores of above 300 that may eventually rank below some other candidates with UTME score of 200 when all other scores are aggregated.

On the parameters of securing admissions, the Jamb Registrar mentioned Post-UTME /Post -A/L qualifications screening/test score; O/L grade score; and in some cases, physical test as prerequisites for being admissible  in tertiary institutions in Nigeria.

The Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination is a ranking examination designed to place the best available registered candidates into Universities, Polytechnics, Colleges of Education and other accredited tertiary institutions in Nigeria.