The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has said that its 120 cut – off mark will put an end to back – door admission and other unwholesome practices associated with gaining admission into higher institutions of learning.
It added that it had introduced a Central Admissions and Processing System to monitor compliance with the minimum prescribed cut – off mark and other admission guidelines, as well as empower candidates to track the process of admission .
The Head of Public Affairs , JAMB , Mr . Fabian Benjamin , said this in a statement made available to our correspondent on Monday .
According to the statement , high cut -off mark is responsible for the flight of many Nigerians to “ glorified secondary schools called universities ” in neighbouring countries and an increased pressure on the naira to pay school fees in foreign currencies .
The statement added , “ The cut – off marks previously brandished to the public were never strictly followed by most institutions. Some were going behind to admit candidates with far less scores , while others admitted candidates who never sat for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination .
“ This act , to say the least , is very distasteful and damaging to our national data and identity . Unfortunately , the public has been kept away from this fact for such a long time and now that we are saying it the way it is and working to address it, the public is criticising us and using non – existing parameters that only announced and not followed . ’’
Adding that the JAMB would not relent in “supporting policies that would bring our education system out of the woods’’ , the statement said that it would pursue the quest to ensure realistic benchmarks for national development.
“ It is necessary to explain that the 120 cut – off mark does not in any way suggest that if you score 120 admission is guaranteed. Institutions will admit from the top to the least mark . It’ s also a known fact that for you to study a course , say Hausa , in Nigerian universities , you will need a credit in Mathematics . However in London , all you will need is a credit in Hausa and English . This and many other poorly thought – out policies have pushed frustrated candidates out of Nigeria to the developed and neighbouring African nations for education , which they could not get at home .
“ The issue that all of us should be concerned about is how to address the flight of Nigerians to glorified secondary schools called universities in Ghana , Uganda, even in The Gambia and other countries . How do we ensure that whatever we do has positive multiplier effects on other sectors of the economy , if we deny our candidates the opportunity to school in Nigeria ? , ’’ it added .

Punchng