What Is the Pass Mark for Post-UTME? How Your Score Is Used

There is no national pass mark for post-UTME. Each university sets its own rules, and most do not use the post-UTME score as a pass-or-fail test at all. Instead, they combine it with your UTME score, and sometimes your O'level grades, into an aggregate, then admit candidates from the top of that ranking until each course is full.

So the useful question is not "what is the pass mark?" but "how much does my post-UTME score move my aggregate, and how high does that aggregate need to be for my course?"

Why "pass mark" is the wrong way to think about it

A pass mark suggests that everyone above a line gets in. Post-UTME rarely works like that. Two candidates who both score well can have very different outcomes, because one applied for a course with 40 places and 2,000 eligible applicants, and the other for a course with 100 places and 300 applicants.

Some universities do publish a minimum post-UTME score, or treat a very low one as disqualifying. Where a school does that, it will say so in its screening notice. But even then, clearing the minimum only keeps you in the ranking. Your place in that ranking is what decides admission, the same principle our cut-off marks explainer applies to JAMB scores.

How the aggregate works

Universities publish their own formulas. The University of Ilorin, for example, ranks candidates on UTME (or A-level) 50%, post-UTME screening 30%, and five relevant O'level grades 20%. Other schools split UTME and post-UTME 50/50, or leave O'level grades out. Our aggregate score guide walks through the arithmetic.

An illustration shows why post-UTME matters so much. Imagine a school that counts UTME as 50 points (your score divided by 8) and post-UTME as 50 points (your percentage divided by 2). Two candidates:

• Candidate A: UTME 240 → 30 points. Post-UTME 50% → 25 points. Aggregate 55.
• Candidate B: UTME 210 → 26.25 points. Post-UTME 70% → 35 points. Aggregate 61.25.

Candidate B scored 30 marks lower in JAMB and still finished more than six points ahead. In a ranking where courses are decided by a point or two, that is the difference between being on the admission list and not.

What score should you aim for?

Aim for the highest you can, because there is no safe number. Two practical ways to set a target:

1. Work back from last year. Many universities publish the merit cut-off for each course after screening. If you know the aggregate your course admitted at last year, you can work out the post-UTME score you would need, given your UTME score.
2. Add a buffer. Competition changes every year. If your sum says you need 60%, prepare for 70%.

If your UTME score was only just above the school's eligibility mark, your post-UTME target needs to be higher still. That is the part of the aggregate you can still change.

When there is no post-UTME exam at all

Not every school sets a written test. Some run an "online screening" in which candidates submit their details and are ranked on their UTME score and O'level grades only. In that case your aggregate is already largely fixed by the time you apply, and the main thing you can control is submitting accurate details on time. Our guide to online screening versus the post-UTME exam explains the difference.

How to raise your post-UTME score

• Find out the format. Number of questions, subjects covered, time allowed, CBT or paper. The school's notice usually says.
• Use past questions properly. Not to memorise answers, but to learn the style and spot weak topics. See how to use past questions properly.
• Practise under time. Post-UTME papers are often short and fast, so speed is as important as knowledge.
• Do not neglect English and general knowledge where your school includes them.

Frequently asked questions

What is a good post-UTME score?

One that lifts your aggregate above last year's admission level for your course, with a margin. For competitive courses, that usually means scoring well above half marks.

Is 50 a pass mark for post-UTME?

There is no universal pass mark. Some schools set a minimum; most rank candidates by aggregate instead. Check your school's screening notice.

Can a high post-UTME score make up for a low JAMB score?

Often, yes, because post-UTME usually carries a large share of the aggregate. It cannot help if your UTME score is below the school's eligibility mark, because you will not be allowed to sit the screening.

Do all universities write post-UTME?

No. Some rank candidates on UTME and O'level grades through an online screening without a written test.

Post-UTME is the part of your aggregate you can still move. Practise free on EasyPoint with timed post-UTME and JAMB past questions until the format feels routine.