The Lagos State Government has rejected the 150 minimum cut-off mark approved by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) for university admissions, insisting that candidates seeking admission into state-owned universities must score at least 185 in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
The Commissioner for Tertiary Education, Tolani Sule, disclosed this on Wednesday during a ministerial press briefing at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre in Alausa as part of activities marking the third year of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s second term in office.
Sule said the cut-off mark approved by JAMB was too low for Lagos State universities and did not reflect the academic standards expected in the state.
According to him, none of the state’s three universities would admit candidates who scored below 185 in the UTME.
“To us in Lagos State, the cut-off marks approved by JAMB look too low for our universities. None of our three universities is admitting any student who scored below 185 in the UTME,” he said.
The commissioner explained that while JAMB’s decision may have been designed to accommodate candidates across the six geo-political zones, Lagos would not lower its standards to match states facing educational challenges.
“For JAMB to announce 150 as the cut-off mark out of the 400 obtainable marks in the UTME for this year’s admission seekers is very low,” Sule stated.
He added that Lagos should not be regarded as an educationally disadvantaged state and would continue to uphold higher academic standards in its admission process.
“Lagos cannot be considered educationally disadvantaged to the extent of bringing its cut-off mark down to meet what Sokoto or Zamfara State requires,” he added.
The development indicates that candidates seeking admission into Lagos-owned tertiary institutions may face stricter entry requirements despite JAMB’s national benchmark for the 2026 admission exercise.