The Federal Government has revised Nigeria’s tertiary admission policy, removing Mathematics as a compulsory subject for candidates seeking admission into Arts and Humanities.
The new guideline, approved by the Ministry of Education, aims to make higher education more inclusive and eliminate barriers that have excluded many qualified students.
Under the policy, Mathematics remains mandatory only for Science, Technology, and Social Science programmes. Universities will now require five credit passes, including English Language and other relevant subjects, while Mathematics applies only where necessary.
For polytechnics, English remains compulsory at the National Diploma level, but Mathematics is optional for non-science courses. However, both English and Mathematics remain compulsory at the Higher National Diploma level.
At Colleges of Education, Mathematics will be required only for Science, Vocational and Technical courses.
Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, said the reform seeks to democratise access to higher education. “This policy is about fairness, inclusion, and aligning with global standards,” he stated.
An estimate by officials suggests the new policy could allow up to 300,000 additional students to gain tertiary admission annually.
