Lagos rejects JAMB’s 150 UTME benchmark, insisting state-owned universities will not admit candidates below 185

The Lagos State Government has rejected the 150 minimum cut-off mark approved by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board for university admissions, insisting that candidates who score below 185 in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination will not gain admission into any of its state-owned universities.

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Commissioner for Tertiary Education, Tolani Sule, disclosed the state’s position on Wednesday during a ministerial press briefing held at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre in Alausa to commemorate the third anniversary of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s second term in office.

Sule described the benchmark approved by JAMB as excessively low for Lagos institutions, stressing that the state would not compromise its educational standards.

“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,” the commissioner said.

The commissioner argued that while JAMB’s decision may have been designed to accommodate candidates across the country’s six geo-political zones, Lagos could not be categorised alongside states with lower educational performance indicators.

“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.

“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.

Sule maintained that the state government would continue making strategic investments in tertiary education infrastructure while preserving high admission standards.

He noted that the increase in Lagos State-owned universities from one to three reflects the administration’s determined efforts to expand access to higher education opportunities.

According to the commissioner, plans are also underway to establish a fourth state-owned university to accommodate more admission seekers.

“Increasing our universities from one to three is still part of what the state governor is doing to provide more educational platforms and opportunities for Lagos residents,” Sule said.

“And increasing the number to four is still part of this effort by the state government to give all admission seekers the opportunity to get tertiary education in Lagos,” he added.

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The development is expected to fuel fresh debate over university admission standards and the widening disparities in educational performance across states following JAMB’s latest admission policy announcement.