NUT Rejects JAMB’s Cut-off Marks

Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, Registrar, Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB)

Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, yesterday rejected the cut off marks approved by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, for admission into tertiary institutions in the country.

The union said the decision was derogatory, highly discriminatory and calculated at demeaning and lowering the professional status of teachers with its concomitant negative effect on the attainment of quality education in the country.
In a statement signed by its Secretary General, Obong Obong, and made available to National Mirror, NUT said JAMB’s aim was to ensure that the best brains and students of distinction were placed in other courses, while those with lower grades were pushed into teaching.

The union said it was strongly opposed to the current admission policy, which places JAMB admission cut off marks for students seeking admission into universities at 180 and above, while those for polytechnics and colleges of education were placed at 150 and above.

The marks were approved by JAMB after heads of tertiary institutions in the country voted in favour of the scores at the 6th Combined Policy Meeting on Admissions to Degree, Nigeria Certificate in Education, National Diploma and Innovation Diploma-awarding institutions in Abuja on July 14 this year.
The same scores were used for admission into the schools last year.
Speaking at the event, JAMB Registrar, Professor Dibu Ojerinde, said 1,475,600 sat for the examination, which took place between 10th and 24th March this year
“Applicants, who scored above 180 in the examination, represent 63.13 per cent of total candidates who participated in the exercise