Northern pupils are not given preferred cut-off marks- JAMB

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, has stated that students from the northern portion of Nigeria do not receive "preferential cut-off grades" in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME.

Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State has previously urged the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, or JAMB, to stop awarding “preferential scores” to students from the north.

The Governor, speaking on Channels Television's 'Sunrise Daily,' said it was unfair for students in the North who take the UTME to be given preferential treatment.

El-Rufai stated that all students in the country should receive the same cut-off scores, and that children in the north should receive a higher cut-off score.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the board's Head of Information and Media, Fabian Benjamin, claimed that the exam organization did not award preferential cut-off grades to anyone.

“JAMB does not award candidates preferential cut-off marks. Institutions determine which candidates are admitted based on their scores.

”After the policy meeting has authorized the start of admission, the students sit for the UTME examination, and the results are the basis for their selection.

“The cut-off mark is the minimum score, and each school sets its own minimal score; it is a result of performance in the UTME for the year, program subscription.

”The subscription to a certain program or school is the deciding element. If the subscription is very low, it will have an impact on the program's minimal score,” he explained.