education

JAMB announces mop-up UTME for over 5.6% absent candidates

Published

12 months ago

May 21, 2025

JAMB has announced a new mop-up examination for over 5.6% of candidates who missed the 2025 UTME, with Registrar Professor Ishaq Oloyede emphasizing fairness and rejecting claims of bias

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced a fresh round of mop-up examinations for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

Also read: JAMB releases details on 2025 UTME: Underage performance, malpractice cases, pending results

This initiative is set to accommodate over 5.6% of candidates who missed the recently concluded main examination.

JAMB Registrar, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, made this disclosure on Wednesday during a stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja.

He stated that the mop-up examination would be open to all affected candidates, irrespective of the reason for their initial absence.

“This time, we are creating a new mop-up. Even those who missed the earlier exam due to absence will get another opportunity,” Professor Oloyede affirmed.

He further explained the rationale, saying, “It’s not extraordinary. In any serious system, when students miss an exam, they’re allowed to make up—provided there’s no abuse.”

This time, we are creating a new mop-up. Even those who missed the earlier exam due to absence will get another opportunity.

Professor Oloyede reiterated that the UTME serves as a placement test, not a measure of intelligence or academic potential. He clarified, “Its purpose is to rank candidates for limited admission slots, not to test how smart someone is.”

Addressing recent criticisms and conspiracy theories surrounding the examination process, Professor Oloyede firmly rejected claims of ethnic bias or administrative incompetence.

“I take responsibility, not because I failed, but because that’s leadership,” he stated. He also expressed surprise at the ethnic lens through which some issues were perceived, urging a move beyond such profiling.

The Registrar commended both candidates and staff for their resilience in navigating logistical difficulties during the main examination.

“We had limited space. We knew if we wasted more time grieving the challenges, students would lose their opportunity,” he said.

Related Topics:Admissions education featured JAMB Mop-up Exam Nigeria UTME

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education

Lagos Rejects JAMB’s Low UTME Cut-Off Mark

Published

3 hours ago

May 13, 2026

Victory Emmanuel

Lagos rejects JAMB’s 150 UTME benchmark, insisting state-owned universities will not admit candidates below 185

The Lagos State Government has rejected the 150 minimum cut-off mark approved by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board for university admissions, insisting that candidates who score below 185 in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination will not gain admission into any of its state-owned universities.

Also read: JAMB Sets Deadline for Universities, Polytechnics to Complete Admissions

Commissioner for Tertiary Education, Tolani Sule, disclosed the state’s position on Wednesday during a ministerial press briefing held at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre in Alausa to commemorate the third anniversary of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s second term in office.

Sule described the benchmark approved by JAMB as excessively low for Lagos institutions, stressing that the state would not compromise its educational standards.

“To us in Lagos State, the cut-off marks approved by JAMB look too low for our universities. None of our three universities is admitting any student who scored below 185 in the UTME,” the commissioner said.

The commissioner argued that while JAMB’s decision may have been designed to accommodate candidates across the country’s six geo-political zones, Lagos could not be categorised alongside states with lower educational performance indicators.

“For JAMB to announce 150 as the cut-off mark out of the 400 obtainable marks in the UTME for this year’s admission seekers is very low,” Sule stated.

“Lagos cannot be considered educationally disadvantaged to the extent of bringing its cut-off mark down to meet what Sokoto or Zamfara State requires,” he added.

Sule maintained that the state government would continue making strategic investments in tertiary education infrastructure while preserving high admission standards.

He noted that the increase in Lagos State-owned universities from one to three reflects the administration’s determined efforts to expand access to higher education opportunities.

According to the commissioner, plans are also underway to establish a fourth state-owned university to accommodate more admission seekers.

“Increasing our universities from one to three is still part of what the state governor is doing to provide more educational platforms and opportunities for Lagos residents,” Sule said.

“And increasing the number to four is still part of this effort by the state government to give all admission seekers the opportunity to get tertiary education in Lagos,” he added.

Also read: JAMB Confirms UTME 2026 Exam Centre Details

The development is expected to fuel fresh debate over university admission standards and the widening disparities in educational performance across states following JAMB’s latest admission policy announcement.