The Joint Admission and Matriculation Board’s (JAMB) 2025 Policy Meeting has delivered some massive updates for students, parents, and education stakeholders in Nigeria.

In the board’s just concluded annual policy meeting a lot of changes were made, such as admission deadlines, and shift in how scores are evaluated, among others. But cynicism seems to have greeted the development.

Rankings and not scores

Ishaq Oloyede, registrar/chief executive officer at JAMB, announced various policy changes from the policy meeting among which are that the tertiary institutions entrance examination being conducted by the board is now all about ranking, and not necessarily just scores.

“JAMB is not an achievement test; it is a ranking exam,” Oloyede said.

This simply means that a candidate’s admission chances do not just depend on how well he or she scored, but on how his or her score compares to other candidates.

Breakdown of the new rule implies that a candidate for instance that applied for Nursing in a particular university with a score of say, 278, can still not be admitted if the number of other candidates with above her score are enough to fill the given quota in such an institution.

Candidate’s slip and national rank

Another development from the meeting is that all JAMB result slips will now include the candidate’s actual score, and national rank.

For instance, a candidate with 370 ranked only 16, while another with 200 would rank 533,005; and a score of 140 may land one a rank of over 1.5 million.

This, then means a candidate is expected to focus on his or her ranking, not just the score.

Top 10 UTME candidates

JAMB announced the best 10 performers in the 2025 UTME, their chosen institutions, and courses.

The list includes Nzekwe Chinedu Chielotan, 379, the University of Lagos, Mech. Engineering; Ayuba Simon-Peter John, 378, the University of Lagos, Mech. Engineering; Jimoh Abdulmutalib Olayinka, 374, the University of Lagos, Mech. Engineering; and Roberts Daniels Ayiba, 373, the University of Lagos, Mech. Engineering.

Others are Ononogbu Chigozirim Chibuozor, 373, the University of Lagos, Elect/Elect Engeering; Olawoye Garrudee Tumise, 371, the4 University of Lagos, Mech. Engineering; Afiunu Ofeoritse Leslie, 369, Covenant University, Computer Science; Azayiseme Samuel Chukwumeka, 369, Covenant University, Mech. Engineering; Oyelude Oluwapemisi Emmanuel, 369, Obafemi Awolowo University, Aerospace Engineering; and Omigie Osaiogho Cecil, 367, the University of Ibadan, Mech. Engineering.

10 most sought-after universities for 2025

The universities that received the highest number of first-choice applications are the Lagos State University (LASU), 79,000; the University of Lagos (UNILAG), 58,645; University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), 56,734; Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), 52,103; and Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), 51,467.

Others include the University of Ibadan (UI), 48,291; the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), 46,542; University of Benin (UNIBEN), 45,686; and Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), 43,777.

This simply means that applicants will face tougher competition in these institutions, especially in popular courses like Medicine, Law, and Engineering.

Cut-off marks

The approved cut-off marks for 2025 admission are thus; Federal/State Universities: 150, Colleges of Nursing: 140, Polytechnics: 100, and Colleges of Agric/Education: 100.

Admission deadlines

The admission deadlines for the 2025/2026 session shows that public universities must conclude admission by October 2025, while the deadline for private institutions is November–December 2025.

Admission expiry dates

According to the new JAMB policy, admission offers now have expiry dates. If JAMB recommends a candidate to an institution, the school must accept or reject such a candidate within two weeks.

Moreover, if an institution offers a candidate admission, such a candidate must accept or reject the admission within four weeks.

Admission rules against “runs”

JAMB also tightened admission rules against “runs”, hence, universities must admit at least 90 percent of candidates on merit before using “connections”. Merit-first is now a policy, and it must be enforced.

Admission remains 16

JAMB has affirmed that the minimum age for admission remains 16, which means that anyone younger than 16 is not eligible for admission, regardless of their UTME score.

Most competitive courses

According to JAMB report, medical courses are still the most competitive, with over 570,000 applications, and only about 115,000 admitted.

That’s less than one in five applicants, hence, candidates for medical courses should ensure they have solid backup plans.

The changed game

Parents should bear in mind that for the fact that their child scored 300+, which is great, but is ranked 200,000, this might not mean much.

Cynicism greets development

Many Nigerian parents and pupils seeking admission into universities in 2025 have expressed skepticism over the good intention of those who came up with the initiative. The thinking is that it was conceived to deny deserving candidates admission while giving undue advantage to those who are not academically bright. (BusienssDay)