- JAMB has ended admissions into affiliated degree programmes in Colleges of Education
- The NCE is now the only admission route into the institutions
- The new policy takes effect from the 2026/2027 academic session
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has discontinued admissions into affiliated degree programmes offered by Colleges of Education, making the Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) the only admission pathway into the institutions from the 2026/2027 academic session.
Eko Hot Blog gathered that the directive was contained in JAMB’s newly issued NCE/ND Agric Registration Guidelines released by the Office of the Registrar in June 2026.
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Under the new policy, the Board stated that admissions into all university-affiliated degree programmes in Colleges of Education would cease from the 2026/2027 session.
JAMB also ruled out direct admission into 100-level and 200-level degree programmes in Colleges of Education, declaring that all new students must first enrol through the NCE programme.
The decision ends a long-standing arrangement that allowed Colleges of Education to award university degrees through affiliations with conventional universities.
The policy is expected to affect many candidates who had applied for affiliated degree programmes during the 2026 admission exercise.
To reduce the impact on affected applicants, JAMB introduced several options for candidates seeking admission through Direct Entry.
According to the Board, such candidates may change their institution without paying any fee, transfer to the parent university affiliated with the programme, or allow their second-choice institution to become their first choice for admission processing.
Candidates were also given until June 22 to complete any desired changes.
For applicants seeking admission through the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), JAMB said they could either change institutions, upgrade their second-choice institution to first choice, or switch to the NCE programme.
The Board explained that candidates who choose the NCE option would be required to obtain an O’Level verification code from the relevant examination body and pay a registration fee of ₦700 through the JAMB portal.
JAMB further stated that once a candidate accepts admission into an NCE programme, any ongoing UTME or Direct Entry admission process would automatically be suspended.
The Board also announced mandatory O’Level verification for all NCE applicants, with verification fees fixed at ₦1,500 for one sitting and ₦2,000 for two sittings.
In addition, candidates who applied through the 2026 UTME would have their records automatically transferred to their selected first-choice College of Education or Agric-related National Diploma (ND) programmes where applicable.
JAMB directed Colleges of Education, accredited CBT centres, Institutional Professional Registration Centres and its officials nationwide to study the new guidelines carefully and ensure full compliance.
The Board said the reform is aimed at strengthening the NCE as the primary qualification for teacher education in Nigeria while ending fresh admissions into affiliated degree programmes from the 2026/2027 academic session.
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