JAMB to sanction varsities over illegal admissions

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has said it will sanction universities offering admission to Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination candidates on their own portals without abiding by the Central Admissions Processing System.

The board also warned candidates not to accept any offer of admission that is not validated on their profile page with JAMB or offered through the CAPS, adding that such admission offers were illegal and would not be recognised.

JAMB on Monday disclosed this in its weekly bulletin, saying that the intention of the universities was to “lure innocent and more qualified candidates from their preferred programmes so that they could accept other programmes.”

The board noted that the universities had been advised to promptly withdraw and desist from such illegitimate actions.

It said, “We have received complaints that three public universities have devised methods of offering admission to candidates outside the CAPS on their own designated portals. But the CAPS system is designed, among other things, to prevent institutions from unilaterally changing or proposing a candidate for admission into other programmes other than his or her chosen one; to disallow an institution to skip a higher ranking candidate to pick a less ranking candidate; and to allow an institution recommend a substitute programme for the consent or rejection of a low ranking candidate, who is not likely to secure a place in the initial programme.

“In order to circumvent the rights of candidates, the institutions are now using their own portals to unlawfully persuade and pressurise candidates to accept another course and then make a change of course on the JAMB portal to the new course supposedly offered on their own portal.

“These tricks are improper and should be disregarded by the candidates. All institutions employing such tricks are putting into jeopardy the future of the illegitimately favoured less qualified candidates as the board will not condone or regularise such irregular admission.

“Any candidate who accepts such offer of admission, made outside CAPS, does so at his or her own risk. There shall be no regularisation of any irregular or condonment of illegal admission. Appropriate caution has been given to these universities to withdraw and desist from such illegitimate action. Any such act will henceforth be visited with appropriate sanctions.”

Although JAMB did not disclose the names of three universities, it put a photograph of the University of Ibadan, Oyo State, in the warning.