Oloyede advocates ‘no verification, no admission’ policy to curb A’Level fraud

The Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, has urged tertiary institutions across Nigeria to enforce a strict “No Verification of A’Level Results, No Admission” policy as part of efforts to curb the use of fake certificates in the admission process.

Oloyede gave the charge during the 2025 Policy Meeting on Admissions, stressing that institutions must ensure that all Direct Entry (DE) candidates have their A’Level results verified through the Nigeria Integrated Post-Secondary Education Data System (NIPEDS) before being considered for admission.

He warned that any certificate not cleared by NIPEDS should be treated as invalid, describing the rising trend of certificate forgery as “worrisome and dangerous to the integrity of the nation’s higher education system.”

According to him, “The prevalence of fake A’Level certificates used to gain undue advantage in admission is alarming. Policymakers and critical stakeholders must work together to combat this hydra-headed monster capable of undermining the quality of education in our institutions.”

The JAMB boss recalled that NIPEDS was established in 2021 in response to the widespread use of fake A’Level qualifications by DE candidates. He cited findings by Bayero University, Kano (BUK), in 2019, where, during a routine verification exercise, 142 out of 148 certificates submitted for screening were discovered to be fake.

Oloyede reiterated the need for universities and other tertiary institutions to prioritise the verification of all A’Level results and to avoid conducting admissions outside the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS).

He emphasised that while JAMB would continue to perform its statutory roles, the primary responsibility for verifying A’Level certificates lies with the admitting institutions.

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