The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), alongside key stakeholders in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector, has approved 150 as the minimum admission benchmark for universities for the 2026 admission exercise.
The decision was reached on Monday during the 2026 annual policy meeting on admissions into tertiary institutions held in Abuja.
The approved scores, officially referred to as the National Minimum Tolerable UTME Scores, mean that no university is permitted to admit candidates who score below the benchmark set during the meeting.
However, tertiary institutions are allowed to fix higher cut-off marks for candidates seeking admission into their respective programmes.
Last year, universities also adopted 150 as the minimum benchmark, while polytechnics and colleges of education retained 100 as their minimum admission score.
The benchmarks were adopted after extensive deliberations and voting by heads of tertiary institutions, including vice-chancellors and other education stakeholders.
The policy meeting also featured discussions on broader admission guidelines, institutional quotas, and reforms aimed at improving Nigeria’s tertiary education admission process.
More details are expected to emerge from the meeting.
