The Joint Admission Matriculation Board (JAMB) has said that the University of Ilorin; University of Lagos and the University of Benin are the first three institutions which had the highest number of applicants as first choice universities in Nigeria.
This was recorded in the 2021 policy document made available to the press and signed by the JAMB’s registrar, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede.
However, the University of Ilorin which came first in the top 10 had 78,466 applications, University of Lagos had 59,190, while the University of Benin, third, had 49,763.
Others in the top ten choice institutions are the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, 47,239; Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, 45,920; Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, 44,509; Bayero University, 44,352; Nnamdi Azikiwe University, 43542; Obafemi Awolowo University, 42, 614 and University of Jos, 38,309.
The report also revealed that the 2021 UTME cumulative performance statistics out of the total 1,312,992 applicants who wrote UTME in 2021, 168,613 scored 200 and above, 236,936 scored 190 above, 327,624 scored 180, 445,597 scored 170 above, 5995,015 scored 160 above, 772,463 scored 150 above, 964,098 scored 140 above and 1,134,854 scored 130, while 66,811 scored below 120 and 1,245,449 scored 120 and above
In efforts to make enquiries easy for applicants, JAMB said the candidates no longer needed to travel to JAMB offices to access certain services.
“The board uses the ‘ticketing system’ where a candidate or anybody desiring the board’s services can send their complaint(s). Responses are given within 24 hours. It has a tracking number that is issued once a ticket is raised. If not attended to, the number can be used as evidence to track the officer scheduled who would be sanctioned. The system is designed to eliminate any stress associated with accessing the board’s services,” it read partly.
Extortion of candidates by some centres during registration was also identified as a major challenge the board experienced.
