The Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB) has revealed that it has uncovered 3,000 fake graduates who never attended university classes. The board also criticized certain institutions for conducting illegal admissions, labeling it a source of national embarrassment.
This revelation was made by JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, in a report published in the board’s bulletin, obtained by our correspondent in Abuja.
“Some ‘graduates’ have never entered the four walls of a university due to the endemic corruption in the system, but the board has documented over 3,000 such cases,” Oloyede disclosed during a meeting with the leadership of the Committee of Pro-Chancellors of State Universities.
The bulletin highlighted that illegal admissions have been a longstanding concern for JAMB, which views the practice as a significant disservice to the nation.
In December 2023, the House of Representatives Committee on Basic Education directed JAMB to compile a list of tertiary institutions involved in irregular and illegal admissions. JAMB has previously warned candidates against accepting admissions from such institutions without full academic participation.
The statement, titled “Cessation of Illegal/Irregular Admission,” reiterated that all applications for admissions to first degrees, national diplomas, national innovation diplomas, and the Nigeria Certificate in Education—whether full-time, distance learning, part-time, outreach, or sandwich—must be processed solely through JAMB.
JAMB’s commitment to curbing illegal admissions aims to ensure the integrity of Nigeria’s higher education system and maintain the value of its academic qualifications.
