The Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and stakeholders have set 100 and 140 as the cut-off marks for 2022/23 admissions into polytechnics and universities across the country.
Is-haq Oloyede, the board’s registrar announced the approval during the 2023 Policy Meeting on Admissions to Tertiary Institutions and Awards, on Saturday in Abuja.
“JAMB policy meeting on admission into tertiary institutions approves minimum tolerable score for 2023 admissions; University- 140, Polytechnic-100, Colleges of Education-100.”
He explained that the approved scores are the minimum to be scored by a candidate as a prerequisite for admission. However, universities are at liberty to decide individual cut-off marks but no university will be allowed to admit any candidate who scores below the 140 benchmark.
Read also:2023 UTME: JAMB remits over N2bn to FG
However, some stakeholders have described the development as an agenda to frustrate education in Nigeria.
Boye Ogundele, an educationist frowned at the news which he described as a retrogressive approach to learning in Nigeria.
“It is nothing but arrant nonsense. It is tactics put in place by the northerners to put the standard of education in Nigeria into jeopardy. I know some universities in the south will never subscribe to it,” he said.
Ogundele further revealed that if this system is allowed to continue, it will end up breeding mediocrity in the ecosystem of the country.
“It is very appalling that JAMB succumbed to the oligarchy pressure, and this will only pave the way for their mediocrity,” he noted.
Stanley Booh, a lecturer at the Federal University, Otuoke in Bayelsa State described the scenario as a state of confusion.
“They are a confused set of people, why the back and forth with cut-off mark?” he asked.
“For me, they have lowered the standard of education where people that are not even qualified to enter the university get admission,” he noted.
Boroh suggested that the policymakers should revert to the 200 because according to him, this is not even up to average.
Similarly, Abiodun Adeleke decried the falling education standard in the country.
“About 10 years ago, the University of Ilorin (Unilorin) bounced my JAMB score of 249 and post JAMB of 56 percent for Business Administration.
Now someone can get admission with just a 140 mark. Omooooo education is turned to rubbish,” he said.
Nevertheless, Friday Erhabor, a parent with two children in the university tends to see the cut-off marks from another dimension.
“The truth is that JAMB is just an entrance examination. Don’t forget that apart from JAMB, students are expected to have recorded a minimum of five credit passes including English Language and Mathematics in their O’Level examination.
“Besides, the various universities will conduct their own post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (post-UTME). So the cut-off mark of 140 for university is okay. It is more or less a confirmation requirement,” he noted.
