JAMB Retains 150 Cut-Off Mark for Universities, Sets 2026 Admission Deadlines
Edino Chubiyo Cornelius 
JAMB Registrar, Is-haq Oloyede
ABUJA, Nigeria – Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has retained 150 as the minimum cut-off mark for admission into universities for the 2026/2027 academic session, while also announcing deadlines for the completion of admissions across tertiary institutions nationwide.
The decision was reached on Monday during the 2026 Policy Meeting on Admissions into Tertiary Institutions held in Abuja, where vice-chancellors, rectors and other stakeholders in the education sector deliberated on admission benchmarks and timelines.
Under the approved National Minimum Tolerable UTME Scores, universities are expected to admit candidates with scores not lower than 150, while colleges of nursing will also maintain 150 as the benchmark. Polytechnics, monotechnics and colleges of education were assigned a minimum score of 100 out of the obtainable 400 marks.
The policy meeting also approved new timelines for the conclusion of the 2025/2026 admission process across tertiary institutions.
According to the timetable adopted at the meeting, public universities are required to complete admissions on or before October 31, 2026, while private universities have until November 30, 2026, to finalise their admission exercises.
Polytechnics, monotechnics and colleges of education are expected to conclude admissions not later than December 31, 2026.
The board explained that although institutions are permitted to set higher cut-off marks based on their admission requirements, no institution is allowed to admit candidates below the approved national benchmarks.
The announcement comes amid continuing debates over admission standards in Nigeria’s tertiary education system after last year’s decision to peg the university cut-off mark at 150 generated widespread criticism from some education stakeholders who argued the benchmark was too low.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government also announced exemptions for candidates seeking admission into education programmes and agriculture-related non-engineering courses from sitting for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
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Korede Abdullah 
