The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has released three crucial requirements that every UTME candidate must fulfil to be included in the National Matriculation List—an essential condition for NYSC mobilization and other official recognitions.
The announcement was made during JAMB’s 2025 Policy Meeting on Admissions, following widespread concerns over irregular admissions that have recently affected thousands of Nigerian graduates.
According to the new directive, candidates must:
- Accept their admission on CAPS within the stipulated period,
- Print their original JAMB result slip, and
- Print their original JAMB admission letter.
JAMB explained that these steps are necessary to ensure that only candidates who were properly admitted through its Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS) are recognized for further academic and national processes.
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This clarification follows the outcry over cases like that of Basola Jamiu Owodunni, an orphan who graduated with a 4.41 CGPA in Civil Engineering from the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), but was flagged by JAMB as “not properly admitted.” Though Owodunni had an admission letter issued via JAMB’s platform, the board claimed his name was not captured on CAPS, rendering the admission invalid under current rules.
Public pressure mounted over the case, with interventions from education advocate Alex Onyia, human rights activists, and concerned Nigerians. Weeks later, Owodunni and others in similar situations were eventually cleared and regained access to their JAMB records.
JAMB has since reiterated that any admission not processed through CAPS is void, regardless of documentation. The board insists that strict adherence to its procedures is the only safeguard against future disqualifications.
In a media briefing over the weekend, JAMB Registrar Prof. Ishaq Oloyede confirmed that the board is also cracking down on examination malpractice. So far, 80 suspects have been apprehended nationwide for offences ranging from impersonation and biometric fraud to collusion with CBT centres. Anambra topped the list with 14 arrests, followed by Lagos with nine.
Stakeholders are urging candidates and institutions to comply fully with JAMB’s outlined procedures to avoid unnecessary setbacks in their academic and post-graduation journeys.
