On Thursday, stakeholders in the education sector approved 140 as the National Minimum Tolerable UTME Score (NTMUS), popularly known as the cut-off mark for 2024 admission into the nation’s universities, and 100 for polytechnics and colleges of education, respectively.
According to JAMB Registrar Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, individual institutions were free to raise the minimum benchmark established at the policy meeting, but they could not go below it.
“Every institution is at liberty to determine the minimum UTME score acceptable to it for admission. Similarly for DE, each institution will determine the number of points required by it for direct entry admissions. Nevertheless, no institutions can recommend or admit any candidate with less than 2 points.”
While noting that more females had applied for admissions, the Registrar warned the head of institutions to desist from giving admissions outside CAPS, even as he noted modifications to the admission process.
“As was done in the 2023/2024 admission exercise, only users of CAPS for 2024/2025 would be allowed to use their official email address to log in. Personal or private email addresses are no longer allowed to access caps by any authorised user.
“Institutions are to forward the post-UTME scores for all candidates through CAPS as part of requirements to be submitted before recommendation of the candidate for admission.
“Institutions are free to conduct post-UTME screening as many times as possible but all results must be including absentees other you are not proceeding because we will know you are conducting selective admission.”
Meanwhile, the minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman has conceded to requests by heads of tertiary institutions to allow candidates who were 16 years of age, to gain admission into tertiary institutions of their choice.
Mamman had called for the enforcement of 18 years as the new minimum admission age for admission into tertiary institutions in the country.
“Information has revealed that the enrolment of underage candidates is inflicting serious damage on the university and the education system, hence, the need for enforcement of extant rules.
“When I was monitoring the just concluded 2024 UTME, I was alarmed at the participation of a large number of obviously under-age candidates in the examination.
“This necessitated my comment on the need to enforce the extant provisions of the educational policies which made provision for nine years of basic education and three years of Senior Secondary Education before entry into tertiary institution.
“It is clear that a child who, as expected is enrolled in basic school at the age of six and having undergone 12 years of education would be around 18 years old when being enrolled in a tertiary institution.
“Flowing from this, JAMB is hereby instructed to admit only eligible students’ i.e. those who have attained 18 years. Universities are advised to avoid recommending unqualified children for admission,” the minister added.
The minister was however forced to succumb and rescind his decision, following the argument that students under the age of 16 had already registered, sat and passed the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and awaiting admission.
Leading the motion, the Vice Chancellor of Elizade University Prof. Kayode Thadius Ijiadunola who got massive support from other heads, registrar and admission officers participating in the policy meeting, proposed 16 as the minimum age requirement for admission into tertiary institutions.
He said: “What happens to those who have written this year’s exams and passed their exams? We reject 18 years as the minimum age requirement and are proposing 16 years.”
While the hall erupted in support of 16 years as a minimum requirement, the Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, asked where parents and candidates were rushing to.
Oloyede said: “The only point is they have taken the examination and at that time they were not told or aware and therefore if we want to enforce it, it should be from subsequent years.”
The minister in response had said, “I can work with that but I want to remind you of one thing, even that argument cannot stand if we want to go by the law which states 6-3-3-4 as our system of education, it won’t stand but for practical reasons, for this year, I will allow it to stand.
Reiterating the minister’s decision amidst resounding applause, Prof Oloyede added, “We thank the minister for conceding but from next year we will enforce it.”
Also, the Minister of Education disclosed that a new curriculum would be introduced for secondary schools nationwide by September 2024.
“We are working hard to ensure that a new curriculum is introduced for secondary schools by September.”
Mamman noted that the exercise has been on for the past year and a stakeholders meeting will be held on August 6, 2024. It is our plan that by September, this programme will be implemented in all schools, public and private.”
In recent developments, three candidates have been named as top scorers for the 2024 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination(UTME), having scored 367. The three candidates are Olowu David from Ondo State, Alayande David from Oyo State and Orukpe Joel from Edo State.
Also in the list unveiled by the JAMB Registrar includes; Emmanuel Jeremiah-366(Akwa-Ibom), Essiet Etini-365 (Akwa-Ibom), Ezenwoko Zara-365 (Abia), Umoh Joshua-365 (Akwa-Ibom) and Mamudu Abdulraham-364 (Edo).
Others are; Adeleke Abdulbasit-363(Kwara), Echem Victor-363 (Rivers), Etute Emmanuel-363 (Edo), Jedidiah Chidiebube-363 (Imo) and Adesanya Oluwatimilehin-363 (Ogun).