Would you like to know the surest way to get into a University in Nigeria through JAMB without knowing anybody?
In this guide,
You will see how to gain admission in Nigeria University through JAMB without connection or runz and irrespective of your tribe or religion.
ALSO SEE: How To Secure University Admission WITHOUT JAMB
Take note.
This guide is for all Nigerian University admission and therefore answers every question on:
- How to gain admission into UNILAG
- How to gain admission into UI.
- How to gain admission into ABU.
- How to gain admission into OAU.
- How to gain admission into UNIBEN.
- How to gain admission into UNN.
- How to gain admission into UNIPORT.
- …and every other University.
But first,
Let’s correct a common misconception.
Nigerian Universities do NOT discriminate in their selection of candidates for admission.
They all want to admit the best students that can make the school proud in future so why will they reject you because of religion or tribe if they know that you have the potential of making them proud?
Instead,
Their selection strictly depends on the available spaces, number of applicants and how well you satisfy their requirements.
Nigerian University Admission Requirements
Though, each University in Nigeria has its own requirement, they are often not so different.
JAMB UTME candidates:
- Must be 16 years old or above.
- Must possess a minimum of credits at one or two sittings in five O/level subjects.
- Must possess these credits in the required O/level subjects for their course.
- Must choose the University as their first or second choice in JAMB.
- Must obtain the minimum JAMB score required for their course (usually between 170–200).
- Must possess the correct O/level and JAMB subject combination for their course.
- Must register for and participate in their Post UTME/screening.
- Must meet the departmental cut-off mark for their course.
For Direct Entry, candidates should see the D.E requirements for admission.
How to gain admission in Nigeria University with JAMB
Satisfy the above requirements and you already have a chance of getting into even the toughest Universities in Nigeria like UNILAG, UI, UNIBEN, UNN, ABU, OAU, UNIZIK and the likes.
However,
Your chance is still “slim” because thousands of other candidates will also satisfy these same requirements and compete with you for the small admission space.
So, how can you increase your chances of gaining admission in Nigeria University?
1. Obtain higher O/level grades
Universities will always ask you to upload your O/level result on JAMB portal before they consider your application.
This is because they assign points to each of your grade in the five required O/level subjects and the total will then determine how qualified you are for that course compared to other applicants.
For example.
See the University of Lagos (UNILAG) grading system for the O/level result of each applicant:
NOTE THAT other Universities have their own O/level grading system but the assigned score for each grade will likely be the same.
| GRADE | MEANING | POINT |
|---|---|---|
| A1 | Distinction | 4.0 |
| B2 | Merit | 3.6 |
| B3 | Merit | 3.2 |
| C4 | Credit | 2.8 |
| C5 | Credit | 2.4 |
| C6 | Credit | 2.0 |
From the general requirement, a minimum of “CREDIT” is acceptable in all Nigerian Universities.
But from the grading system, you can see that “credits” have the lowest points and attracts the highest competition — thousands of other candidates will also possess O/level credits.
So be among the few with distinction or merit and if you must have credit, stop at C4.
…but if your O/level result is already not that strong, back it up with JAMB.
2. Score higher in JAMB
Nigerian Universities divide JAMB scores mercilessly when calculating their departmental cut-off mark.
Take for example.
Schools like UNILAG, …… require the minimum JAMB score of 200 but will divide that by 8 to see if you meet the cut-off point for that department.
200/8 is just 25 points.
Add that to the total grade point of your five O/level subjects and you won’t even get up to 45 which leaves you at the mercy of Post UTME.
But what if your University is one of those that does not conduct Post UTME?
Will your 45 points (O/level + JAMB) meet the departmental cut-off point for courses like Medicine, Law or Engineering?
You can now see that just meeting the JAMB cut-off mark does NOT exactly boost your chances of admission— it only qualifies you for Post UTME screening.
It is by exceeding that cut-off mark that your efforts on how to gain admission in Nigeria University is crowned with success.
In fact,
Don’t just exceed the cut-off mark, exceed it by farrrrrrr! Especially if you are going for competitive courses like Medicine, Law or Engineering.
These courses always have the highest cut-off points, and even more if the University is popular.
So we researched the best JAMB score for these competitive courses, assuming you obtained As and B’s in O/level:
| LAW | 250+ |
| ENGINEERING | 270+ |
| MEDICINE | 300+ |
But if you had more or only “credits” in your O/level, you’d have to score way higher than the above recommendations.
…and maybe, Post UTME.
3. Score high in Post UTME
Is your University one of those schools that do not conduct Post UTME? This means that they will only use your O/level and JAMB score to whether to admit you or not.
In that case,
Skip this Post UTME tip on how to gain admission in Nigeria University and scroll down to the next.
But if your University does Post UTME, then you are in luck because a good score here will boost your total points.
Depending on the University,
Post UTME questions are often just English, Mathematics and General Knowledge or exactly the same subjects you did in JAMB.
While the scores are either totalled over 30, 50, 100 or 400 and then sliced in half or quarter before being added to your points.
We therefore recommend that you obtain at least three-quarter of the total Post UTME score to stand a better chance of admission.
| TOTAL | RECOMMENDED |
|---|---|
| Over 30 | Score 22+ |
| Over 50 | Score 37+ |
| Over 100 | Score 75+ |
| Over 400 | Score 300+ |
- See How To Score High In Any Post UTME screening
Note that you can still be admitted even with scores lower than the recommended for O/level, JAMB and Post UTME.
However, that depends on the available admission spaces to number of applicants and what those applicants also scored.
…which leads to our next tip.
4. Consider University popularity
A University that gets several thousands of applicants yearly is a popular University.
Most popular Universities in Nigeria always have more number of applicants than their available space can admit per year.
For example.
Look at the number of applicants for these Universities and the number of those finally admitted:
Source: Premium Times
In 2020,
UNILORIN admitted only 18.7% of her applicants, UNIMAID 32.2%, UNIZIK 24.2%, while UNILAG admitted just 16.9%.
Can you see the margin?
Popular Universities get thousands of applicants than their admission quota can carry, which is why they are “strict” in their selection.
While the less-popular ones barely get enough applicants and are therefore the Universities that give admission easily.
So, if your academic strength is NOT equal to the “strictness” of admission in popular Universities, consider a less-popular alternative.
- See the List of Less-Popular Universities that Offer Admission Easily
…because the course you studied is more important in the job market than the University you studied it in.
5. Consider course competition
A course is competitive when a lot of candidates are applying for that same course.
This is why courses like Medicine, Law and Engineering are always the hardest to get because everyone wants to study them.
But since no University has enough capacity to admit “everyone”, they will raise the cut-off point for that course and toughen their requirement to disqualify many.
Which begs the question…
Why insist on “Medicine” when there are other less-competitive Medical courses that will still make you a Doctor?
Or why “Law” when other Law courses will still make you a Lawyer?
There is nothing wrong with going for a competitive course, just be sure that your academic strength can handle the tough requirements of that competitive course.
Otherwise, consider a “similar but less competitive” course and your admission is almost guaranteed.
In fact,
Let’s combine course competition with University popularity to measure your admission chances.
| COMBINATION | ADMISSION |
|---|---|
| Competitive Course in a Popular University | HARDEST |
| Competitive Course in a Less Popular University | HARD |
| Less Competitive Course in a Popular University | EASY |
| Less Competitive Course in a Less Popular University | EASIEST |
- See the List of Less-Competitive Courses In Nigerian Universities
Also note,
A first-class Biochemist is better than a third-class Medical Doctor because the grade you graduated with is often more important than the course you studied.
6. Know the catchment areas and ELDs
Every public University has its own catchment area which favours indigenes of some States with lower cut-off mark and an extra 35% chance of admission.
What is catchment area?
The catchment area of a University refers to both the location of that University and some or all of her neighbouring States.
For example.
UNIBEN has the following six States as her catchment areas:
- Akwa-Ibom
- Bayelsa
- Cross-River
- Delta
- Edo
- Rivers
Indigenes of a University’s catchment area enjoy lower cut-off mark, even for competitive courses, and an 80% chance of admission into that University.
So,
An applicant of UNIBEN who is also an indigene of (let’s say) Bayelsa has an 80% chance of gaining admission into UNIBEN.
While other applicants outside these UNIBEN catchment areas have just 45 percent.
What about ELDs?
Educationally-Less Developed States (ELDs) are those States where education is LEAST popular.
Indigenes of ELDs also enjoy lower cut-off mark with 65% chance of admission, especially into Federal Universities.
Some States in the South and many in the North fall under this category.
The tip here on how to gain admission in Nigeria University is to consider Universities located within or around your State of origin.
- See the ELDs and Catchment Areas of All Universities In Nigeria
…but if your State is not an ELDs or catchment area of the University you truly desire, you can still secure their admission via merit.
7. Make the merit list
GOOD LUCK.
Do you have something to ask on how to gain admission in Nigeria University with JAMB? Comment below and a staff or fellow ACADite will reply you.
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