The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB on Tuesday pegged the minimum cut-off mark for admissions into universities for the 2017/2018 acade
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB on Tuesday pegged the minimum cut-off mark for admissions into universities for the 2017/2018 academic year at 120. The decision was taken together with vice-chancellors, rectors and provosts of higher institutions in the country at a combined policy meeting on admissions into universities, polytechnics and other higher institutions in Nigeria in Abuja on Tuesday.
The stakeholders also adopted 100 as the minimum cut-off mark for admission into polytechnics. They agreed that admission into first choice universities should close on October 15 while December 15, 2017 was set as the closing date for second choice admission by institutions.
JAMB Registrar, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, said universities should not go below the minimum 120 cut-off point adopted by the meeting for admissions. He called for the adoption of flexible cut-off marks for admission processes by higher institutions in the country. He said, “What JAMB has done is to recommend; we will only determine the minimum, whatever you determine as your admission cut-off mark is your decision. The Senate and academic boards of universities should be allowed to determine their cut-off marks.”
The registrar said the board discovered over 17,160 illegally admitted students by higher institutions, adding that the body had regularised some of them. He said, “30 per cent of those in higher institutions do not take JAMB or have less than the cut-off marks. The admission process is now automated with direct involvement of the registrar of JAMB for final approval. We have agreed to regularise admissions that were done under the table this year. From next year, we will not accept anything like that.”
The Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, described as a mistake the Federal Government’s ban on tests conducted by universities after the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations. He explained that post-UTME was banned because it had become an avenue for corruption. Adamu however encouraged higher institutions to conduct aptitude tests for candidates seeking admission and pegged the fee for the test at N2,000.
Punch
