The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced deadlines for the completion of the 2025/2026 admission exercise for tertiary institutions across Nigeria.

The timelines were agreed upon during the 2026 JAMB Annual Policy Meeting on Admissions into Tertiary Institutions held in Abuja on Monday.

Under the new schedule, all public universities are expected to conclude their admission processes on or before October 31, 2026, while private universities have until November 30, 2026, to complete admissions.

JAMB also directed that polytechnics, monotechnics, and colleges of education must conclude their admission exercises no later than December 31, 2026.

The board stressed that all institutions are required to strictly adhere to the approved admission timetable.

According to JAMB, institutions that fail to complete admissions within the stipulated period will lose access to candidates on the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS) platform.

The board further announced a four-week grace period for candidates to accept admission offers after approval by their institutions.

It warned that candidates who fail to accept their offers within the specified timeframe risk losing the admission and could be classified under a “refusal to accept” category, which may affect future admission eligibility.

The policy meeting was attended by vice-chancellors, rectors, provosts, and other education stakeholders, with discussions centred on improving coordination and ensuring uniformity in admission processes nationwide.