House Urges Universities Not To Raise JAMB Cut-off Marks

ABUJA, July 09, (THEWILL) -The House of Representatives, Tuesday, urged the Federal Ministry of Education to urgently call federal institutions and other institutions violating government approved cut-off marks for Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) candidates to order.

It consequently mandated its Committee on Education to interface with the Ministry of Education and federal universities and allied institutions to ensure that they adhered to government policy on education.

This resolution was taken following the adoption of a motion on “blatant disregard of government's directive on JAMB cut-off mark” for federal universities and a need to call defaulting institutions to order, by Hon. Victor Ogene (APGA-Anambra).

Ogene said the Minister of Education,Prof. Ruquayat Rufai, had at a Combined Policy Meeting on Admission announced the government's approved cut-off mark for universities as 180 and Polytechnics/ Colleges of Education at 150.

He said current admission requirements by several Nigerian universities, especially the federal universities, founded and funded by the Federal Government was in total disregard of this directive.

"While 180 marks was approved by government, eligibility for post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) entrance examination into federal universities such as the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), University of Lagos (UNILAG), University of Benin (UNIBEN), Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), is pegged at 200 marks and above, the Federal University of Technology, Minna and Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka (UNIZIK), put theirs at 190 and 200 for science courses respectively," he said.

He said unless the government guideline of 180 marks for Universities and 150 for Polytechnics and Colleges of Education are strictly adhered to by these federal institutions, many Nigerian youths who scored less than 200 marks, would be denied admission.