The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has scrapped all admissions into affiliated degree programmes across Colleges of Education in Nigeria, with the policy taking effect from the 2026/2027 academic session. The decision, contained in the newly released NCE/ND Agric Registration Guidelines from the Office of the Registrar, reinforces the Nigeria Certificate in Education as the sole entry qualification for all Colleges of Education.

Under the new framework, JAMB declared that no candidate would be admitted into any affiliated programme in any College of Education from the 2026/2027 session. The Board further ruled that direct entry into 100 or 200 level in Colleges of Education would no longer be permitted. "With effect from 2026/7 Session, no admission into 100 or 200 Level is allowed into any College of Education. All entrants are through NCE," the Board stated.

The policy brings to an end decades of affiliated degree arrangements through which Colleges of Education partnered with conventional universities to award bachelor's degrees to students on their campuses.

Candidates who had already selected affiliated Colleges of Education for degree programmes through Direct Entry have been offered three options at no cost: a change of institution to another preferred university, a transfer to the parent university to which the degree programme is affiliated, or allowing their second choice institution to become their first choice for processing. "A candidate may choose to be moved to the parent university to which the Degree programme is affiliated," the Board noted. A deadline of June 22 was set for affected candidates to indicate their preferences.

Candidates who applied for 100 level admission into affiliated Colleges of Education through the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination face similar options, including migrating to the NCE programme of their chosen institution. The Board clarified that candidates opting for the NCE route would pay only ₦700 as registration fee on the JAMB portal after obtaining an O'Level verification code from the relevant examination body. "The candidate may be moved to the NCE programme of the institution, on the understanding that the choice of the College of Education indicates an interest in pursuing the NCE qualification," JAMB explained.

The Board also mandated O'Level verification for all NCE applicants, with fees set at ₦1,500 for one sitting and ₦2,000 for two sittings. Details of candidates who applied through the 2026 UTME mode will be automatically migrated to their chosen first choice College of Education.

JAMB directed all Professional Registration Centres, Institutional Professional Registration Centres, accredited CBT centres and their officers nationwide to study the guidelines thoroughly. "All PRCs, IPRCs and Officers of the Board are to study the guidelines and ensure strict compliance with the information contained therein," the Registrar stated.