Every UTME cycle, a small group of courses consistently demand scores far above the general minimum that JAMB sets for university admission. This article lists the courses with the highest cut-off marks for the 2025 UTME, explains how JAMB’s national minimum differs from what individual universities actually charge for these courses, and gives the subject combinations candidates need alongside their score.
JAMB Cut-Off Mark vs Institutional Cut-Off Mark
Before looking at specific courses, it helps to understand a distinction that confuses many candidates. JAMB itself sets only a national minimum cut-off mark, which is the lowest UTME score a candidate can have and still be eligible to apply to a tertiary institution at all. This national minimum has typically sat around 140 to 150 in recent admission cycles, and it applies as a baseline across universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.
What most people mean when they say “JAMB cut-off mark” for a specific course is actually the institutional or departmental cut-off mark, which each university, polytechnic, or college sets on its own, above JAMB’s national minimum. A university is free to demand 200, 250, or even 280 for a particular course, depending on how many applicants compete for how few available slots. This is why the same course can have a different cut-off mark at two different universities and why meeting JAMB’s general minimum score never guarantees admission into a high-demand course.
Why Some Courses Have Higher Cut-Off Marks
A course’s cut-off mark rises mainly because of the relationship between the number of applicants and the number of available admission slots. Courses tied to well-paying, globally recognized, or licensed professions attract far more applicants than the universities running them can admit in a single intake. Medicine, Law, Pharmacy, and similar professional courses also carry strict accreditation quotas set by their respective regulatory bodies, which limits how many students a university can enroll each session regardless of demand. When thousands of high-scoring candidates compete for a few hundred slots, the realistic score needed to be shortlisted climbs well above the national minimum.
Courses with the Highest JAMB Cut-Off Marks for 2025
The table below lists the courses that consistently required the highest UTME scores in the 2025 admission cycle, along with the general subject combination candidates need at credit level in their WASSCE, NECO, or GCE results.
| Course | Typical UTME Score Needed | Required O’Level Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| Medicine and Surgery | 270 and above (commonly 280+ at top universities) | English Language, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics |
| Pharmacy | 260 and above (commonly 270+) | English Language, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics |
| Nursing Science | 250 and above (commonly 260+) | English Language, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics |
| Law | 240 and above (commonly 250–280 at top universities) | English language, literature in English, and any three other relevant subjects |
| Computer Science | 230 and above (commonly 250+) | English language, mathematics, physics, and two other relevant subjects |
| Accounting | 230 and above (commonly 250+) | English Language, Mathematics, Economics, Financial Accounting, and any other subject |
| Economics | 230 and above (commonly 250+) | English language, mathematics, economics, government or commerce, and any other subject |
These figures represent the realistic score range candidates should target to stand a genuine chance at competitive universities. Scoring at or slightly above a university’s published minimum for these courses places a candidate in the applicant pool, but it does not guarantee admission, since post-UTME performance and available quota still determine the final outcome.
Medicine and Surgery: The Most Competitive Course
Medicine and Surgery holds the highest cut-off mark of any course offered in Nigerian tertiary institutions. Every accredited medical school operates under a strict admission quota approved by its regulatory body, and this quota does not expand simply because demand for the course rises. Because so many top-performing candidates apply for a small number of seats, leading universities routinely set their medicine cut-off at 270 or higher, and some push this closer to 300 in particularly competitive intakes. Candidates also need five credits in English Language, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics, obtained in not more than two sittings, before they can even be considered for post-UTME screening.
Pharmacy and Nursing Science: Health Sciences Under Pressure
Pharmacy and nursing science follow closely behind medicine in competitiveness. Both professions carry strong career stability, licensing pathways, and international demand, which pushes application numbers well above available capacity. Pharmacy programs commonly set cut-off marks around 260 to 270, while nursing science, which has grown rapidly in popularity due to global recruitment opportunities for Nigerian-trained nurses, now regularly requires scores in a similar range. Both courses require the same core science subject combination as medicine: English Language, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics.
Law: A Non-Science Course with Science-Level Competition
Law stands out because it is the rare non-science course whose cut-off mark rivals the medical sciences. This happens because law carries strong professional prestige, clear career pathways into the legal profession, and a limited number of accredited law faculties relative to the number of students who want to study it. Depending on the university, Law cut-off marks for 2025 commonly range from around 240 at less competitive institutions to 280 or higher at long-established faculties. Unlike the science-based courses on this list, Law does not require mathematics, biology, chemistry, or physics; instead, candidates need strong credits in English language and Literature-in-English, along with other relevant arts or social science subjects.
Computer Science, Accounting, and Economics: Rising Demand Beyond Traditional Fields
Computer Science, Accounting, and Economics round out the list of consistently high cut-off courses, though their required scores tend to sit slightly below the medical sciences and Law. Computer Science has climbed sharply in competitiveness over the past several admission cycles due to the growth of Nigeria’s technology sector and the appeal of software-related careers. Accounting remains attractive because of its direct link to professional certification bodies like ICAN, while Economics continues to draw large applicant numbers because of its broad relevance across banking, policy, and corporate roles. All three typically require scores in the 230 to 260 range at competitive universities, alongside a subject combination anchored by English Language and Mathematics.
How University-Specific Cut-Off Marks Differ
Even within the same course, cut-off marks vary meaningfully between institutions. A university with a long-established, highly ranked programme in Medicine or Law tends to set a higher departmental cut-off than a newer or less internationally recognized faculty running the same course, simply because it attracts a larger pool of high-scoring applicants. For this reason, candidates should not rely on a single national figure for any course; instead, they should check the specific cut-off mark published by each university they intend to apply to, since this is the number that actually determines eligibility for post-UTME screening at that institution.
What to Do If Your Score Falls Below the Cut-Off
Candidates whose UTME score falls below the cut-off mark for their first-choice course still have practical options rather than losing the admission cycle entirely. A candidate can use JAMB’s official Change of Course or Change of Institution service to switch to a course or university with a lower, more attainable cut-off mark, provided the change is made within the window JAMB allows for such requests. Alternatively, some candidates choose a related but less oversubscribed course at their preferred institution, with the intention of transferring into their original course of interest after building a strong academic record in the first year, where the university’s internal transfer policy permits this.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the national minimum JAMB cut-off mark? JAMB’s national minimum cut-off mark is the lowest score that qualifies a candidate to apply to a tertiary institution at all, and it has generally sat around 140 to 150 in recent admission cycles. Course-specific cut-off marks are set separately by each institution, above this baseline.
Which course has the highest cut-off mark in 2025? Medicine and Surgery has the highest cut-off mark of any course, commonly requiring 270 and above, with top universities pushing this closer to 280 or higher.
Does scoring above the cut-off mark guarantee admission? No. Meeting or exceeding a course’s cut-off mark only qualifies a candidate to proceed to post-UTME screening. Final admission also depends on post-UTME performance, O’Level results, and the number of available slots.
Can a candidate change their course if their score is too low? Yes. JAMB allows candidates to apply for a Change of Course or Change of Institution to a programme with a lower cut-off mark, within the timeframe the board specifies for such changes.
Is Law considered a science or arts course for cut-off purposes? Law is classified as an arts/social science course and does not require Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, or Physics, but it consistently carries one of the highest cut-off marks among non-science courses due to strong demand and limited faculty slots.
Final Note
The courses with the highest JAMB cut-off marks for 2025 remain concentrated in the health sciences, Law, and a handful of high-demand professional and technology-related fields. Because institutional cut-off marks vary from one university to another and are reviewed each admission cycle, candidates should always confirm the specific figure published by their chosen university rather than relying on a single national number, and should treat the general ranges in this article as a realistic planning guide rather than a fixed, unchanging benchmark.