The Registrar of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, has issued a stern warning to universities regarding illegal admissions that require subsequent ‘regularisation.’
Prof. Oloyede emphasized that seeking regularisation is illegal and cautioned against admitting underaged students.
JAMB regularisation is a process to validate and formalise the admission of students who were admitted into tertiary institutions without proper documentation or through informal means.
This practice, according to Oloyede, has deprived many candidates of the opportunity to participate in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
Speaking in Lagos on Tuesday at the opening of the seventh biennial conference of the Committee of Pro-Chancellors of State-Owned Universities in Nigeria, themed ‘Effective University Governance: Role of Stakeholders,’ Oloyede called for an end to these practices to protect accountability, data integrity, and the nation’s educational system.
“I want to discuss what I call illegal admission. Many Vice-Chancellors don’t like the word, but the truth is that there is no need to regularise what is regular. Calling for regularisation after admission is illegal. Some candidates can’t go for NYSC because they were not properly admitted,” he stated.
He also highlighted issues with admitting underaged students and diploma candidates through illegal means.
Oloyede shared an example of a 15-year-old student from a European country who applied for a postgraduate program, questioning the possibility of such occurrences in Nigeria.
The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, had earlier indicated in April that the Federal Government was considering adopting 18 years as the minimum age for university and other tertiary institution admissions.