The Federal Government has ordered the cancellation of all 2026 admissions into the National Teachers’ Institute’s National Certificate in Education and degree programmes, warning prospective students against enrolling in courses the institute is not authorised to offer.
The government also directed the Kaduna-based institute to end all university affiliations and degree-awarding arrangements over breaches of regulatory requirements governing admissions, accreditation and academic partnerships.
The Federal Ministry of Education announced the decisions in a statement issued on Saturday by its Director of Press and Public Relations, Boriowo Folasade.
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It said the cancellation covered full-time, part-time and Distance Learning Studies programmes, adding that no further admissions into the affected courses were permitted.
“Consequently, all admissions into NTI’s NCE and degree programmes for the 2026 academic session have been cancelled, while the Institute has been directed to discontinue all university affiliations and degree-awarding arrangements, as it is not authorised to award NCE and university degrees,” the statement said.
The ministry warned parents, prospective students and the general public against applying for the programmes, accepting admission offers or making payments to the institute for them.
“The ministry emphasises that no further admissions into the affected programmes, whether full-time, part-time or through Distance Learning Studies (DLS), are permitted,” it added.
According to the ministry, the action 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 and the accreditation standards of the National Commission for Colleges of Education.
The government also directed the National Universities Commission to notify the affected universities and ensure compliance with the order ending NTI’s degree-awarding arrangements.
Despite the cancellation, the ministry said it would protect students already enrolled in existing programmes, particularly those in the NCE II–IV 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 establish which students could be allowed to complete their studies.
“To protect innocent students already enrolled, the NCCE will conduct comprehensive accreditation of existing NCE II–IV Distance Learning programmes and study centres across the six geopolitical zones.
“Eligible students may complete their programmes, subject to accreditation outcomes and regulatory requirements,” the ministry said.
The ministry clarified that NTI’s statutory responsibilities remained focused on teacher training, retraining, in-service development and continuous professional development.
It said the institute was also expected to provide pedagogical capacity-building and a three-to-six-month Special Abridged Programme for serving teachers with non-Education degrees.
The programme is designed to help such teachers acquire the professional competencies required for registration with the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria.
The ministry said the intervention was intended to protect students, uphold academic standards and prevent prospective applicants from enrolling in unapproved programmes.
It urged the public to verify the accreditation and admission status of academic programmes through relevant regulatory authorities and official government channels before applying or making payments.
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