The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and heads of tertiary institutions have 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 agreed benchmark.
However, institutions are still allowed to set higher cut-off marks for applicants seeking admission into their various programmes.
Under the new arrangement, universities and colleges of nursing will admit candidates with a minimum score of 150, while polytechnics will retain 100 as their benchmark.
According to JAMB, the benchmarks were adopted after extensive deliberations and voting by heads of tertiary institutions, including vice-chancellors, rectors, and provosts.
“The Heads of Tertiary Institutions in Nigeria had unanimously agreed that the Minimum Admissible Scores for admissions into Universities should be 150, Colleges of Nursing, 150, and Polytechnics, 100,” the Board stated.
The benchmark for universities remains unchanged from the previous admission exercise, where 150 was also adopted as the minimum cut-off mark.
The policy meeting forms part of JAMB’s annual process for determining admission guidelines for tertiary institutions across the country.
Earlier during the meeting, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, announced that the Federal Government had retained 16 years as the minimum age requirement for admission into tertiary institutions nationwide.
Alausa said the policy was aimed at maintaining academic maturity and ensuring candidates are adequately prepared for higher education.
