2015/2016 Admission-Again, Unilorin is
Nigeria’s most subscribed varsity

For the second year running, the University of
Ilorin has again maintained its attraction for
admission seekers, as it retained its status as
the most subscribed university in the
2015/2016 Unified Tertiary Matriculation
Examination (UTME) conducted by the Joint
Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
Of the 1.4 million candidates that sat for this
year's UTME in March, a total of 107,491
chose Unilorin, making the better by far
institution the most preferred university by
admission seekers, same as in the 2014/2015
admission exercise when a little over 105,000
candidates sought to enter the University.
This revelation, contained in a document
obtained from the Joint Admissions and
Matriculation Board (JAMB), also indicated that
the University of Benin, Edo State, placed
second on the preference scale with 71, 497
candidates jostling for its admission. Although
Uniben retained its 2014 position, the number
of candidates seeking to enter the University
this year is about 5,000 less than the 76,000
that applied for admission into the university
last year.
The document entitled, “The Statistics of
Choice of Institutions”, also disclosed that
Nnamdi Azikwe University, Awka, Anambra
State, is third with 70,609 candidates, while
the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, is fourth
with 66,791 candidates.
The JAMB document also showed that the
University of Lagos has 62,473 candidates,
placing it in the fifth position; Ahmadu Bello
University, Zaria, has 60,254 candidates to
occupy the sixth position, while the University
of Ibadan has 47, 501 candidates, placing it in
the seventh position.
According to the document, Obafemi Awolowo
University, Ile-Ife, which had 60,402
applicants in the 2014/2015 exercise,
attracted only 43,967 candidates this year.
Also, the University of Maiduguri, which used
to attract a high number of students before
the invasion of the North East by Boko Haram
insurgents, appealed to only 20, 322
candidates in this year's UTME exercise.
Since 2011, the University of Ilorin has
maintained a steady presence among the most
preferred education institutions by prospective
students. According to statistics obtained from
the National Universities Commission (NUC)
and the Joint Admissions and Matriculations
Board (JAMB), Unilorin was the 8th most
preferred university by admission seekers in
2011; 5th in 2012; 2nd in 2013 and 1st in
2014.
The document also revealed that very few
admission seekers apply to study in the
nation's private universities, as only 20,000 of
the 1.4 million candidates that sat for the
UTME this year - representing two per cent –
chose to study in the more than 60 private
universities in the country.
Of the candidates seeking admission to private
universities, 3,042 applied to the Covenant
University, Ota, Ogun State. Last year, the
school, belonging to the Living Faith Church,
led by Bishop David Oyedepo, had 3,315
candidates.
The three oldest private universities – Babcock
University, Ilishan-Remo; Madonna University,
Okija and the Igbinedion University, Okada –
have 2, 101; 686 and 426 respectively,
whereas in the 2014 UTME, the trio had 2,139;
1,021 and 658 applicants respectively.
The Bells University, Ota, Ogun State, owned
by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, has
only 173 candidates, while the American
University of Nigeria, Yola, belonging to former
Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has 198
candidates.
The Kwararafa University, Wukari, Taraba
State, has the least number of applicants – five
- seeking admission to private universities in
the country this year. Obong University, Ntak,
Akwa Ibom State and the Southwestern
University, Okun-Owa, Ogun State, occupied
this position in 2014. They had only four
candidates seeking placement in each of the
institutions.
Again, whereas Obong University, Ntak, Cross
River State, has increased its profile by having
16 candidates this year, Southwestern
University, Okun-Owa, Ogun State, upped its
ranking by having two more candidates. The
Wellspring University, Ogbaneki, Benin, Edo
State, has seven candidates while each of
Renaissance University, Ojiagu-Agbani, Enugu
and Rhena University, Obeama, Rivers State,
have eight and 10 candidates respectively.
http://www.unilorin.edu.ng/index.php/en/2013-09-02-10-18-35/news-feed/4536-2015-2016-admission-again-unilorin-is-nigeria-s-most-subscribed-varsity

I think this is a positive sign for UniIllorin. How I wish they will sustain that tempo. It is a plus to this Institution.

For the private universities, their costs are so exorbitant that it is difficult for the average Nigerian.