The Registrar/ Chief Executive of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof Is-haq Oloyede, has disclosed that the board is considering stopping the use of uniform cut-off points for admitting UTME candidates into various tertiary institutions in the Nigeria.
According to a statement issued on behalf of the JAMB Registrar by the PRO of the exam body, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, the issue should be subjected to national debate by stakeholders.
Benjamin said, “The uniformity of cut-off marks doesn’t make any sense when colleges (of education) and polytechnics admit for national certificate of education and diplomas, while universities admit for degrees.
“Yet, we subject them to the same cut-off marks, thereby starving these tiers of institutions from admitting candidates who, if not engaged, may likely become easy prey to social vices.
“This means that if a University wants 250 as minimum cut-off marks, why not? And if another wants less so be it. If a Polytechnic like YABATECH (Yaba College of Technology) wants 250 as cut-off marks, let them admit and if Gboko Polytechnic in Benue State where I come from wants less than 200, let them admit.
“Institutions should be known for their individual quality and not collective standards. This will foster positive competition for the overall good of our tertiary institutions. It is critical for all notable stakeholders to rethink the issue of cut-off marks”, he added.
The JAMB Official also called on Nigerians to look at the decision critically for it to take action that would be for the good of the education sector.
