The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has officially announced that the sale of application forms for the 2025 Direct Entry (DE) admissions will commence on Wednesday, March 12, 2025. This critical update comes just days after the closure of registration for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), which saw over 2.03 million candidates sign up for the standardized tertiary institution entrance test.
Direct Entry Registration: Who Is Eligible?
The Direct Entry program caters to candidates with advanced qualifications beyond the secondary school level, such as National Diplomas (ND), National Certificates of Education (NCE), university degrees, or internationally recognized A-Level certificates. These candidates bypass the traditional UTME and gain direct admission into the second year of undergraduate programs at Nigerian universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.
JAMB emphasized that registration will be conducted exclusively through its accredited Professional Registration Centres (PRCs) nationwide. The board warned against fraudulent practices, stating that a dedicated committee will rigorously verify all submitted A-Level certificates and qualifications. “Any candidate found with falsified documents will face prosecution,” said Fabian Benjamin, JAMB’s Public Communications Advisor, in a statement released on Monday.
JAMB has mandated higher institutions to independently verify candidates’ certificates before finalizing admissions. This measure aims to address recurring issues of forged credentials, which have previously compromised admission fairness. The board also reiterated that the National Identification Number (NIN) remains compulsory for all registrations, aligning with federal directives to streamline identity verification.
JAMB reported a total of 2,030,627 registrations for the 2025 UTME, alongside 200,115 applications for the Mock-UTME and 630 trial mock exam participants. These figures underscore the sustained demand for tertiary education in Nigeria, despite infrastructural and logistical challenges. The board’s adoption of Computer-Based Testing (CBT) continues to play a pivotal role in reducing malpractice and expediting result processing.
Established in 1978, JAMB serves as Nigeria’s central body for tertiary institution admissions, overseeing policies, conducting entrance exams, and ensuring compliance with national education standards. Its shift to CBT in 2015 marked a significant leap toward digitizing the examination process, though technical glitches and registration bottlenecks remain occasional hurdles.
Prospective Direct Entry applicants are advised to gather original academic certificates and visit accredited PRCs ahead of the March 12 registration launch. JAMB has not yet announced a deadline for DE applications but urged candidates to avoid last-minute rushes to prevent errors.
With over two million students vying for limited university slots annually, JAMB’s transparency reforms aim to level the playing field. As Benjamin noted, “Our priority is to ensure every qualified candidate secures admission based on merit, not manipulation.”
This announcement reaffirms JAMB’s commitment to maintaining rigorous standards in Nigeria’s education sector, even as stakeholders call for expanded capacity to accommodate the country’s growing youth population.
