FG fixes 150 as admission cut-off for universities, nursing colleges

The Federal Government has approved 150 as the minimum admission cut-off mark for both public and private universities across Nigeria.

The Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, announced the approval during the 2026 admission policy meeting organised by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) in Abuja on Tuesday, May 11.

The government also adopted 150 as the minimum admission benchmark for colleges of nursing nationwide.

The committee approved 100 as the minimum cut-off mark for admissions into polytechnics, warning that institutions found admitting candidates below the approved benchmark would face sanctions.

It also resolved that tertiary institutions willing to conduct screening exercises for candidates are permitted to do so, provided the screening fee does not exceed N2,000.

As part of the admission guidelines, the committee adopted a 60:40 admission ratio for conventional universities and colleges of education, directing that 60 per cent of admissions should be allocated to science-related courses, while 40 per cent should go to arts programmes.

For specialised universities and polytechnics, however, the committee approved an 80:20 ratio in favour of science-based courses.

At the 2025 admission policy meeting held in July, JAMB fixed 150 as the minimum cut-off mark for university admissions.

The board also approved 140 as the benchmark for colleges of nursing, while colleges of agriculture and colleges of education were assigned a minimum cut-off mark of 100.

Earlier, the JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, warned tertiary institutions against granting admissions outside the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS), describing such practices as illegal

Oloyede said some institutions were still issuing admission letters to candidates who had not been approved through CAPS, contrary to federal government directives.

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Oloyede noted that the practice undermined transparency in the admission process, adding that there were cases where candidates with higher scores were denied admission while those with lower scores were admitted.

According to him, disciplinary actions have already been initiated against affected institutions, and sanctions will be applied.

The JAMB boss added that a case involving 11 universities over alleged illegal admissions is currently before the court.

Oloyede also refuted claims that candidates were posted outside their chosen examination towns, explaining that candidates selected their preferred examination towns during registration and were only assigned to centres within those locations.

Oloyede added that investigations into the complaints confirmed that no candidate was posted outside his or her selected examination town.

He said the matter had also been reviewed by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC).

He reiterated that all admissions into tertiary institutions must be processed through CAPS and urged institutions to strictly comply with approved admission procedures.