The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has retained 150 as the minimum cut-off mark for admission into Nigerian universities for the 2026/2027 academic session.
The decision was announced on Monday during JAMB’s annual policy meeting held in Abuja, where vice-chancellors and heads of tertiary institutions agreed on the benchmark for admissions.
JAMB also approved 150 as the minimum score for Colleges of Nursing, while candidates seeking admission into polytechnics must score at least 100 out of the 400 obtainable marks.
The board explained that the approved scores, officially known as the National Minimum Tolerable UTME Scores, are the lowest marks institutions can accept for admission. However, individual schools still have the freedom to set higher cut-off marks depending on their standards.
Last year’s decision to peg the university cut-off at 150 sparked criticism from some Nigerians who argued that the benchmark was too low for university admission.
Meanwhile, JAMB announced that candidates applying for education programmes and non-engineering agricultural courses will no longer be required to sit for the UTME.
Speaking at the meeting, the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, said the minimum admission age into tertiary institutions remains 16 years.
According to him, the government reached the decision after consultations and policy reviews aimed at balancing inclusiveness with academic preparedness.
He noted that while exceptionally gifted students exist, such cases would only be considered under strict guidelines to protect the integrity of the admission system.
Alausa also warned institutions against offering admissions outside JAMB’s Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS), stressing that any admission conducted outside the platform would be regarded as illegal and invalid.
