The National Board for Technical Education has announced that the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board will henceforth oversee all Higher National Diploma admissions in polytechnics, allied institutions, colleges of nursing sciences and health technology.
The directive was contained in a circular dated September 9, 2026, which was sighted according to media reports on Saturday.
The circular was signed by the NBTE Executive Secretary, Prof Idris Bugaje, and addressed to rectors and provosts of the affected institutions.
According to the circular, the development followed a meeting between the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, and key stakeholders, including JAMB, the National Youth Service Corps, NBTE and the Federal Ministry of Education.
Bugaje said the decision was intended to establish a centralised admission system and prevent “illegal and compromised admissions”.
It read, “All HND admissions in all institutions shall, from this session, be taken over by JAMB to provide a centralised process and avoid illegal and compromised admissions, jeopardising students’ mobilisation for NYSC after HND. The FME shall issue a statement on this next week with further details.
“NBTE shall immediately develop HND Admission Guidelines and submit to JAMB to guide the digital platform for the admission, including the waiting period for ND holders before proceeding to HND and exemption for certain ND Health-related programs.”
Commenting on the directive, JAMB’s Head of Media and Information, Fabian Benjamin, told media reports on Sunday that the board would implement the directive.
“It’s a directive from above and ours is to comply to ensure that the good intentions of the government are achieved,” he said.
Regarding part-time admissions, the circular stated that since all part-time ND admissions are now being handled by JAMB, part-time students would be limited to 50 per cent of each institution’s approved full-time quota.
The NBTE also restated its earlier circular dated September 7, which bars the presentation of NCE/HND combination holders for NYSC mobilisation.
Under the latest directive, NCE holders can only secure admission into HND programmes through “direct admission” via JAMB, after which they must obtain a valid ND before advancing to HND studies.
Only the ND and HND certificates will be accepted as valid qualifications for NYSC mobilisation in such instances.
The board said the Minister of Education would reconsider the list of ND agriculture-related programmes whose candidates are exempt from the written Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, with the possibility of extending the exemption to other programmes.
NBTE was instructed to submit a proposal, while the Committee of Heads of Nigerian Polytechnics and Similar Institutions is expected to make its contributions.
The circular warned that rectors and provosts must ensure full compliance, adding that any violation would attract “appropriate regulatory sanctions, including withdrawal of operational licence.”
Bugaje further stated that the minister had approved the settlement of all pending cases involving legally admitted ND part-time and HND full-time candidates, allowing them to be mobilised for NYSC at the earliest opportunity, in accordance with the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
According to the NBTE, the integration would also guarantee that admissions are offered only for accredited programmes and within approved carrying capacities.
“With digitisation, there shall be no hiding place for illegal admissions,” the board said.
