JAMB to re-distribute candidates with cut off mark issues to other versities

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board
(JAMB), said that it was set to re-distribute
candidates with cut-off marks less than what
their first choice of universities required to
needy institutions .
This is contained in a statement signed by the
Head, Media and Publicity of the board, Dr
Fabian Benjamin, and made available to
newsmen on Sunday in Lagos.
It said that the recent admission policy
witnessed at the University of Lagos was
aimed at ensuring that Nigerian universities
admit only the top-best as was done globally.
It would be recalled that candidates and their
parents had on Wednesday, July 22, staged a
peaceful protest at the University of Lagos
gate over the high cut-off marks for
2015/2016 post-UTME screening.
“Sequel to this development, the board has
redistributed the other candidates with cut-off
marks less than what their first choice
required to needy institutions.
“The board, equally, urges candidates and
their parents to check its website from Friday,
July 31, 2015 for their names and institutions
they are placed in,’’ the statement said.
According to the statement, universities are
centres of excellence anywhere in the world
and that of Nigeria should not be an
exception.
It said that JAMB was working round the
clock to ensure that Nigerian universities were
among the best in Africa and perhaps the
world in the next ranking.
The statement explained that the board was
also cautious about utilizing the available
spaces in admitting more candidates bearing
in mind the admission criteria of various
needy institutions.
“The Joint Admissions and Matriculation
Board (JAMB) has reiterated that the national
cut-off marks of 180 for universities.
“We also have 150 for Polytechnics, Colleges
of Education and Innovative Enterprise
institutions in the 2015 UTME as a bench
mark to set the tone for 2015 admission
exercise.
“The decision to have a national accepted cut-
off mark at the policy meeting was to serve as
a guide and pruning mechanism.
“It will also give the tertiary institutions
qualitative and manageable candidates to
choose from a pool of candidates desirous of
tertiary education.
“However, universities and other levels of
tertiary institutions are at liberty to go higher,
but not lower, depending on their peculiarities
and the performance of candidates that
choose them,’’ it explained.
The statement added that the board wished to
state that no candidate would be denied any
right to aspire to tertiary education.
According to the statement, the board is
equally aware that some universities have
their own admission cut-off marks acceptable
by the board for the various courses they
offered.
“Please be informed that the board will always
ensure that these institutions apply this cut-
off marks uniformly across all candidates
without discrimination.
“The decision of the board on the print-out for
this year exercise was done in good faith and
not to jeopardize the right of candidates due
to individual cut-off set by some Nigerian
tertiary institutions.
“ Those candidates who do not meet the cut-
off marks of such institutions will be placed in
needy institutions within their geo-political
zone depending on available spaces in such
institutions.
“The board’s aim is to accommodate as many
candidates as possible instead of just pushing
them to schools we know abinitio does not
have the carrying capacity to admit all,’’ the
statement said
The statement wondered that if UNILAG; with
a carrying capacity of about 9,000 candidates
has over 60,000 applying to it , what happens
to the over 50,000 others?
It said that in such occasion, the board would
ensure that there was balance by ensuring
that those remaining candidates who were not
too fortunate to meet the cut-off marks were
also placed in other needy institutions.
According to the statement, candidates are to
note that the policy is only meant to ensure
that every candidate with a reasonable score
of 180 and above is placed somewhere.
It added that Nigerians were also urged to
believe in the board as it continually strives to
give the entire education system the best.
“ We are not comfortable with the large
number of candidates that sits for the Unified
Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME),
year in year out without gaining admission.
“ It is the belief of the board that this policy
will address the shortfall and accommodate
more,” the statement said.