The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) says it uncovered at least 1,665 fake A-level results during the 2023 Direct Entry (DE) registration exercise.
A-levels are an advanced post-secondary education, the results from which are often used to secure admission into universities.
They allow students to specialise in specific subjects, which can be required for the pursuit of particular disciplines or career paths.
Some nationally recognised bodies that run A-level programmes and award certificates to prospective university admission seekers in Nigeria include the Joint Universities Preliminary Examinations Board (JUPEB) and the Interim Joint Matriculation Board (IJMB).
Ishaq Oloyede, the JAMB registrar, received the leadership of the National Association of Nigeria Colleges of Education Students (NANCES) at his office in Abuja on March 26.
He said the board convened a meeting with NANCES after discovering 397 fake A-level certificates from colleges of education.
Oloyede said at least 453 fake A-level results were seen among university diplomas and even more from other A-level programmes.
He said the board finds it “gravely” concerning that the integrity of A’level certificates for university admission is at stake.
The registrar said JAMB often left the screening of A-level certificates used to apply for direct entry to awarding institutions in the past.
He added that the board was dumbfounded by the startling revelations from the Bayero University in Kano (BUK) where only six certificates from among 148 Direct Entry applications to the institution forwarded for processing were genuine.
He said this “monumental fraud” prompted the board’s meeting with critical stakeholders to chart ways of combating the menace.
Oloyede said the board constituted a verification task force and created a unified compulsory platform for assessing A’level certificates.
The registrar said this A’level results verification regime was occasioned by the endemic corruption associated with the system.
These measures, the registrar added, are intended to restore the integrity of this component of the admission process.
JAMB earlier admitted that the measures put in place to arrest cases of fake A-level certificates among Direct Entry applicants were causing serious challenges for many genuine candidates.
This, it confirmed, partly resulted in the extension of the registration deadline for the 2024 Direct Entry exercise.
