JAMB to Announce 2026 UTME Cut-Off Marks at Policy Meeting on Monday

JAMB to Announce 2026 UTME Cut-Off Marks at Policy Meeting on Monday

If you wrote the 2026 UTME, this week is crucial. The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) will hold its 2026 Policy Meeting on Monday, May 11, 2026, to set the minimum cut-off marks for admission into Nigerian universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.

The meeting will be chaired by the Minister of Education and will bring together key stakeholders to finalize admission guidelines for the 2026/2027 academic session.

According to JAMB’s Public Communications Advisor, Fabian Benjamin, the session will review admission benchmarks and approve what the Board calls “the minimum tolerable scores for admissions.”

These cut-off marks traditionally determine entry requirements across tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Once approved, schools can begin processing admissions based on these benchmarks and their own departmental cut-offs.

This year’s meeting has an international angle. A delegation from Sierra Leone, led by Deputy Minister of EducationSarjoh Aziz Kamara, will attend as observers. The team also includes Vice-Chancellors Prof. Edwin Momoh and Prof. Bashiru Koroma.

The officials are in Nigeria to study JAMB’s centralized admission process as Sierra Leone considers setting up a similar body. They’ve already been briefed on JAMB’s examination and admission procedures at the Board’s Bwari headquarters.

The delegation noted that Nigeria’s model “offers practical solutions to issues they had long sought to address,” especially as rising admission demand creates pressure on Sierra Leone’s tertiary system.JAMB reaffirmed that its centralized system remains central to tertiary placement in Nigeria, warning that critics “may better appreciate its strategic importance” if the system didn’t exist.

Monday’s JAMB Policy Meeting will set the tone for 2026 admissions. Once the cut-off marks are out, expect universities to release departmental cut-offs and begin post-UTME screening.

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