FG Cancels 2026 Admissions into National Teachers’ Institute

The Federal Government has cancelled all admissions into the National Teachers’ Institute’s (NTI) National Certificate in Education (NCE) and degree programmes for the 2026 academic session over violations of regulatory requirements.

The Federal Ministry of Education also directed the Kaduna-based institute to discontinue all university affiliations and degree-awarding arrangements, stating that it was not authorised to award NCE certificates or university degrees.

The ministry announced the decision in a statement issued on Saturday by its Director of Press and Public Relations, Boriowo Folasade.

It warned prospective students, parents and the general public against applying for the affected programmes, accepting admission offers or making payments to the institute.

The cancellation covers full-time, part-time and Distance Learning Studies (DLS) programmes, with the ministry stressing that no further admissions into the affected courses would be permitted.

According to the ministry, the decision followed violations of the Ministerial Operational Guidelines issued on September 12, 2025.

It explained that NCE admissions must comply with the requirements of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), as well as the accreditation standards of the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE).

The government also directed the National Universities Commission (NUC) to notify the affected universities and ensure compliance with the order ending the institute’s degree-awarding arrangements.

However, the ministry said measures would be taken to protect students already enrolled in existing programmes, particularly those undertaking NCE II–IV through Distance Learning Studies.

It said the NCCE would conduct a comprehensive accreditation exercise covering existing programmes and study centres across the six geopolitical zones to determine which students would be eligible to complete their studies.

The ministry added that eligible students could complete their programmes, subject to the outcome of the accreditation exercise and other regulatory requirements.

It clarified that the NTI's statutory responsibilities remained focused on teacher training, retraining, in-service development and continuous professional development.

The institute is also expected to provide pedagogical capacity-building and a three-to-six-month Special Abridged Programme for serving teachers with non-Education degrees to acquire the professional competencies required for registration with the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria.

The ministry urged members of the public to verify the accreditation and admission status of academic programmes through relevant regulatory agencies before enrolling or making payments.