Allegations of admission fraud have rocked the University of Nigeria, Nsukka following revelations that some lower-ranked candidates were offered admission ahead of higher-ranked applicants, prompting swift intervention by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board.
JAMB has directed UNN and other affected tertiary institutions to immediately reverse all irregular admissions carried out in violation of established admission guidelines.
The Board said it uncovered a troubling pattern in which candidates with superior rankings were allegedly bypassed in favour of those who scored lower.
The directive was contained in JAMB’s weekly bulletin released in Abuja on Monday by its Public Communication Advisor, Fabian Benjamin.
“The attention of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has been drawn to the conduct of admissions by some tertiary institutions where higher-ranked candidates are reportedly being bypassed in favour of lower-ranked candidates,” the statement said.
“The Board has cautioned the affected institutions and directed the immediate reversal of such irregular admissions.”
JAMB warned that any breach of the admission process would not be tolerated, stressing that admissions operate on a strict three-tier structure of Merit, Catchment Area and Educationally Less Developed States (ELDS).
According to the Board, each category is guided by ranking, with higher-ranked candidates required to be admitted first before others in descending order.
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“Any situation in which a better-ranked candidate is skipped for a lower-ranked candidate under any of these categories will not be tolerated by the Board,” the statement added.
While ordering reversals where violations were confirmed, JAMB dismissed a recent allegation by a candidate who claimed she was unfairly denied admission into UNN despite a high score.
The Board clarified that investigations showed several candidates ranked higher than her on the admission list, meaning her non-admission followed due process.
“While the Board observed instances where some better-ranked candidates were indeed skipped and had ordered the reversal of those admissions, the said candidate was not affected by such irregularities,” JAMB stated.
The Board reaffirmed its resolve to protect the integrity of Nigeria’s admission system and urged candidates to verify claims of admission malpractice through official channels, warning against the spread of unverified allegations on social media.
The development has intensified scrutiny on admission practices at UNN and other institutions, as JAMB moves to enforce transparency and fairness across the country’s tertiary education system.
