JAMB: Varsities not
mandated to issue admission letters
By Uji A Iliyasu, Abuja
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has urged universities to stop issuing admission letters to candidates, stressing that doing so falls outside their mandate.
The Registrar, Prof. Segun Aina, made this known on Thursday, 15 October, 2026, when a delegation from Veritas University, Bwari, Abuja, paid him a courtesy visit in his office.
Prof. Aina said JAMB is the only body statutorily empowered to issue official admission letters to candidates seeking entry into all tertiary institutions in Nigeria, including universities, polytechnics and colleges of education.
He noted that the challenge lies in the fact that candidates tend to accept any document issued by an institution as genuine admission, once it appears to come from the school. He therefore charged universities engaged in the practice to desist, adding that they also have a duty to ensure candidates obtain the correct documents from the Board.
The Registrar recalled that the Federal Ministry of Education had explicitly directed that all admissions be conducted through the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS), and that any admission outside the platform is illegal and invalid.
Consequently, he said, no institution is permitted to substitute its own letters for the official JAMB admission letter, which is issued by the Board after a candidate has accepted admission on CAPS.
He added that only admission offered through the platform is recognised and acceptable for purposes such as mobilisation for the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).