The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has extended the deadline for the completion of 2025 admissions into public universities to November 17, 2025.
According to a statement signed by JAMB’s Public Communication Adviser, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, the decision followed emergent and compelling circumstances affecting several public universities.
In view of these developments, JAMB said it had decided to extend the admission deadline for public universities to November 17, 2025, to ensure fairness and inclusiveness across institutions.
“JAMB said it had decided to extend the admission deadline for public universities to November 17, 2025, to ensure fairness and inclusiveness across institutions,” the board stated.
Background
The Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, had initially fixed October 31 as the deadline for public universities to conclude their admission processes.
This was intended to allow other tiers of tertiary institutions, including private universities, polytechnics, colleges of education, and innovation enterprise institutions, to wrap up admissions before the overall closing date of December 31, 2025.
The board explained that the decision was taken to stabilise the academic calendar and ensure equitable access to admission slots across all tiers of tertiary education in the country. It directed institutions conducting post-UTME exams to complete the process on time to meet the 2025 admission deadlines.
Reason for extension
However, the Board explained that the extension became necessary due to emergent and compelling circumstances.
“The decision to extend the timeline is anchored on two key considerations,” JAMB stated.
The first, it said, was an appeal from the Association of Vice Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (AVCNU) due to disruptions caused by court orders.
“AVCNU has specially appealed for extension due to the disruption caused by a number of factors, including a court order directing that the status quo should remain on the 2025/26 admission list, which was only clearly lifted by the same court on 28th October, 2025,” the statement noted.
The second reason is tied to new academic programmes recently approved by the National Universities Commission (NUC).
“In a bid to expand access in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, the NUC on 29th October, 2025, released a list of 229 programmes recently accredited for 37 universities. Admission into those programmes are just being scheduled,” the Board explained.
The Board expressed appreciation to all institutions for their efforts and cooperation in meeting the initial target date, but stressed that the new deadline is final and must be strictly adhered to.
JAMB reaffirmed its dedication to maintaining a credible and transparent admission process that supports Nigeria’s education goals while upholding institutional autonomy. The Board also emphasized that it remains focused on ensuring a seamless and fair system that strengthens public confidence in the nation’s tertiary admissions framework.
