What is your take on FG pegging tertiary admission age at 16, JAMB pegging admission cut-off mark at 150

This week, the Ministry of Education announced that the official age for tertiary admission in the country is 16 years. In a similar development, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) pegged the general tertiary admission cut-off mark at 150 out of 400. KINGSLEY ALUMONA sampled the opinions of Nigerians on this matter. Their views:

Henry Iheukor Agu

Pegging tertiary admission age at 16 years and general admission cut-off mark at 150/400 may have merits, but their implications on education quality and student readiness are concerning. While the intention to promote merit and access is commendable, it may compromise standards.

A balanced approach, considering both merit and readiness, would better serve Nigerian students’ interests.

Stakeholders must engage in nuanced discussions to ensure policies align with national educational goals and global best practices, ultimately enhancing the education system’s integrity and effectiveness.

Jimmy

I do not have issues with JAMB scores or cut-off marks. JAMB is the ultimate test of knowledge. However, at 16 years, a child, boy or girl, is at the peak of his or her vulnerable stage.

At that age, a child is supposed to be within the reach of the parents for appropriate guidance.

Adeniyi Adewumi

We have had exceptionally bright students who graduated from Nigerian universities at 19 years with good grades and are doing exceptionally well after school. How are we sure that a student who scored 150/400 in JAMB will perform exceptionally more than a 15-year-old candidate who scored 350/400?

We have many candidates who are below 16 years that did exceptionally well in the 2025 JAMB. JAMB should release the scores of the top 500 candidates and see if all of them are 16 years and above.

I do not support pegging the age of students to 16 years. 15 years is better. Also, a 150/400 cut-off mark is too low for admission into the university.

Musa Musa

It is a gross decay of the system to reduce cut-off marks to 150. Even the previous 180/400 is not a pass mark. Age-wise, tertiary education requires maturity — physically, mentally, emotionally, and otherwise.

Anything less than this birthed all the vices we are seeing on campuses.

Kayode Awojobi

While admitting 16-year-olds is not entirely bad, the students would need proper monitoring and support to succeed morally and academically in higher institutions.

However, many institutions today in the country lack quality counselling services and are ill-equipped to guide students in character and learning. In like manner, lowering cut-off marks to 150 for our universities may further weaken standards, especially given the struggles with basic literacy some students face.

To improve education, we need qualified, up-to-date educators and better guidance on relevant fields, particularly with AI reshaping careers.

Isaiah Ebema Joseph

This is the fall of the education standard in Nigeria.

The rate of teenage pregnancy and abortion rate would soon increase. There is no wisdom in these policies or developments.

There are no policies in place to curtail the effects of this.

Agwu Arisa Agwu

These developments are very unfortunate and show a lack of wisdom. A tertiary admission at 16 years, when did the person start primary school? Primary school is six years, and secondary school is another six years, making it 12 years. This means the child was four years old when they started primary school? The ideal age should be eight years to start primary school, plus six years to complete primary school, that is 14 years, plus six another years for secondary school, making it 20 years. A child at 20 years is mature, mentally and physically, to enter the university if all things are equal. Coming to the 150/400 cut-off mark. This is madness. It is irrational and lacks wisdom. That will further destroy Nigeria’s educational system and the acquisition of knowledge and skills.

Joseph Binuyo

A 200 cut-off mark for university admission is fair.

An exceptional candidate should be exempt from the age limit. Age should not be barrier to education.

15 years minimum limit should be transparently stated by JAMB to avoid mischief by the schools.