Nigerian universities admit less than half their capacity – JAMB

Most Federal Universities across Nigeria admit less than half of their carrying capacity amidst complaints that majority of eligible secondary school leavers don’t have access to university education, Registrar, Joint Admissions and matriculations Board, Professor ‘Dibu Ojerinde, has said.

Professor Ojerinde, who said this while briefing newsmen on Tuesday on the board’s preparation for this month’s Unified Tertiary Institutions Matriculation Examination (UTME) said only few universities like Federal University, Kashere, University of Benin and Federal University, Lokoja, are good in admitting up to their carrying capacities as specified by the National Universities Commissions (NUC).

He said if the universities don’t live up to expectation in terms of admitting up to their carrying capacities, he will publish the names of under-performing universities in terms of admission in newspapers for Nigerians to know the universities, adding that only 35% of last year’s 1.7 million applicants got admitted.

He said “the 2014 UTME shows a decrease of one Hundred and Twenty-Nine Thousand, One Hundred and Thirty -Nine (129,139) applicants when compared with last year’s figure of One Million, Seven Hundred and Thirty-Five Thousand, Eighth Hundred and Ninety-Two(1,735,892).”

The Board advised candidates for the Paper Pencil Test (PPT) and Dual Based Test (DBT) coming up on 12th of this month to visit their exam centers a day before the examination to ensure that their centers have not been moved to another location within the examination town.

It also asked Computer Based Test Candidates “to go on-line to print their e-slip if they have not done so and be sure of their time-table for the Computer-Based Test (CBT) Examination.”

The board candidates and officials to stay away from examination malpractice during the UTME which is scheduled to take place in 392 examination towns in Nigeria and 7 foreign centers in Accra, Ghana, Bue, Cameroun, Cotonou, Republic of Benin, London, United Kingdom, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Johannesburg, Republic of South Africa and Abidjan, Cote D’Voire.

JAMB boss said the board “has engaged the services of Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSDC), the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) the State Security Services (SSS), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission(ICPC), to monitor examination centers and maintain close surveillance during the examination for a peaceful and successful conduct.