FG Scraps UTME for NCE and Agriculture ND Candidates; Minister Alausa Unveils Bold ‘Direct Entry’ Reform to Solve 2.2 Million Candidate Logjam

The era of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) acting as a mandatory hurdle for all tertiary aspirants has officially ended for two of Nigeria’s most critical sectors. In a move described as a “technical rescue” for the nation’s education and food security pipelines, the Federal Government announced on Monday that prospective teachers and agriculture students are now exempt from writing the annual entrance exam.

Speaking at the 2026 Policy Meeting on Admissions in Abuja, the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, declared that the “digital-age” reality of Nigeria’s growing student population required a more flexible admission portal. With over 2.2 million candidates sitting for the UTME this year a 10.5% increase from 2025 the Minister noted that the administrative burden on JAMB had reached a tipping point.

Under the new guidelines, which take effect immediately for the 2026 cycle, candidates seeking admission into Colleges of Education for an NCE or into polytechnics for non-engineering Agriculture ND programmes will be assessed primarily on their O-Level results. “This is a deliberate policy position to encourage our youth to embrace professions that are the bedrock of national growth,” Alausa stated. He emphasized that Colleges of Education often have the capacity to admit more students from their local communities, and removing the UTME barrier will help tackle the “out-of-school” challenge.

However, the Minister was quick to clarify that this is not a “free pass” that bypasses JAMB entirely. All affected candidates are still required to register on the JAMB portal. Their O-Level results and other credentials must undergo a rigorous “technical screening” through the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS). “The integrity of the admission process remains non-negotiable,” Alausa warned, adding that any institution attempting to admit students outside of the CAPS framework would face severe sanctions.

The reform has already sparked intense debate in the “educational trenches” of the country. While some stakeholders hail it as a pragmatic solution to a bloated system, others have raised questions about maintaining academic standards in the absence of a standardized entrance test. For the millions of students currently navigating the 2027 transition cycle, the message from the Ministry is clear: the path to the classroom and the farm has just been made significantly shorter.