The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has extended the 2025 admission deadline for all public universities from October 31 to November 17, 2025, following appeals from stakeholders and disruptions in the admission process.
The extension was announced in a statement issued by Dr. Fabian Benjamin, JAMB’s Public Communication Adviser, who said the decision became necessary due to “emergent and compelling circumstances” affecting the timely conclusion of admissions in some universities.
“In light of these developments, and to ensure fairness and inclusiveness, the Board hereby extends the deadline for the completion of 2025 public university admissions to Monday, November 17, 2025,” the statement read.
JAMB recalled that during the 2025 Policy Meeting on Admissions held on July 18, 2025, under the chairmanship of the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, October 31 had been approved as the original deadline for public universities to complete admissions.
According to the Board, the timeline was designed to allow other tertiary institutions — including private universities, polytechnics, colleges of education, and innovation enterprise institutions — to finalize their own admissions before the national closing date of December 31, 2025.
Benjamin explained that the new extension became inevitable for two main reasons.
“They include an appeal by the Committee of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (AVCNU), following disruptions caused by a court order halting the 2025/2026 admission process — an injunction lifted only on October 28, 2025 — and the recent accreditation of 229 new academic programmes across 37 universities by the National Universities Commission (NUC) on October 29, 2025,” the statement noted.
He said the newly accredited programmes required universities to adjust their admission schedules to accommodate the fresh courses.
While commending universities that had already met the earlier deadline, JAMB urged others to ensure strict compliance with the new November 17 deadline.
“This new deadline is final and binding. All public universities must comply,” Dr. Benjamin said.
The Board reiterated its commitment to maintaining a transparent and credible admission process that aligns with national education objectives while respecting institutional autonomy.
