About
University of Ilorin (UNILORIN) is a federal government-owned public research university in Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria. The university's main campus sits on an expansive area of land, about 5,000 hectares in the ancient city of Ilorin; making it the largest university in Nigeria and one of the largest in Africa by landmass. The university comprises 16 faculties and over 100 academic departments offering 103 programmes. It was established by a decree of the Federal Military Government of Nigeria in August,1975. The University of Ilorin has the highest enrollment of foreign students in Nigeria. The establishment aimed to implement one of the educational directives of the Third National Development Plan, which was aimed at providing more opportunities for Nigerians aspiring to acquire university education and to generate high-level manpower, which is vital for the rapidly expanding economy.
| Acronym |
UNILORIN |
| Nickname |
Better By Far |
| Motto / Slogan |
Learning and Character |
| Colour |
Deep Blue, Green, Gold, White |
| Mascot |
Eagle |
| Founded |
1975 |
| Undergraduate Programmes |
|
| Postgraduate Programmes |
70 |
| Departments |
130 |
| Location |
Ilorin East, Kwara, Nigeria |
| Address |
Ground Floor, Admission Office, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria |
Admission
Admission Rate (60%)
0%
60%
100%
Undergraduate Admission Requirement
- All Candidates are required to sit for the current Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and pick Unilorin as their First Choice of Institution.
- All Candidates are required to have credits at SSCE, GCE, NECO, NABTEB or approved equivalent in at least five (5)?subjects, which must include English Language and four (4) other subjects as may be specified by each Faculty.
- The five credits should be obtained in not more than two sittings.
- For Medicine and Surgery (MBBS), Nursing Science and Physiotherapy programmes, the five (5) credits (including?Mathematics and English) must be obtained at only one sitting.
Supporting Documents
- O'Level results (WAEC/NECO/NABTEB/GCE) (or equivalent)
- UTME/DE results.
Postgraduate Admission Requirments
- All entry certificate requirements shall be available at the point of purchasing the application form. The National Youth Service Corp Discharge Certificate OR Exemption Certificate should be dated and presented on or before September 30th, 2025.
- Applicants are expected to submit their application forms online, together with scanned copies of their credentials.
- After the submission of the application forms online, as stated in (ii) above, all supporting documents in (i) above and the hard copy of the application form should be forwarded to the Secretary, Postgraduate School, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria between Monday, 2nd June 2025 and Friday, 6th June 2025, while the submission of Transcripts of Academic Records should be addressed and forwarded to the Head of Department where the admission is being sought. The Postgraduate School will not be held liable for any misdirected transcript.
- All applicants must have 5 O/L Credit passes in the relevant subjects, which must include English Language and Mathematics. In line with Senate directives, applicants who had their O/L results before the year 2015, may have a pass in English or Mathematics depending on the programme applied for.
- Applicants for the Master degree programmes who are graduates of the University of Ilorin and other recognized universities must have a minimum of Second Class Honours Degree (Lower Division) and must be applying for programmes in which they had their first degrees. However, applicants with Second Class Honours Degree (Lower Division) and those with higher classes of degrees seeking admissions into programmes outside those in which they had their first degrees may be admitted, provided they satisfy the University of Ilorin Senate’s requirements in a qualifying examination to be conducted. The least class of first Degree for all academic programme applicants is Second Class Honours Degree (Lower Division). The Bachelor degrees should be obtained from the University of Ilorin or any other university recognised by the Senate of the University of Ilorin. ALL applicants shall apply early for their official Bachelor degree transcript to be sent to the Head of Department where the admission is being sought, before the expiration of the stated deadline in B (iii) above. Again, the Postgraduate School will not be held liable or responsible for any misdirected transcript.
- Applicants for the Ph.D. degree programme shall have obtained a relevant Master degree of the University of Ilorin or from other recognized Universities, with an average weighted score of at least 60% or a 4.0 points CGPA on a 5-point scale. Short-listed applicants would be required to satisfy the Postgraduate School in the qualifying interviews and assessments by the relevant Department. Applicants are, therefore, expected to interact with the department to which they have applied to ascertain the interview date for the Ph.D. degree programme. Regardless of the institution where the Master degree was obtained, all candidates must apply early for the official copy of their academic transcripts to be sent to the Head of Department where the admission is being sought for the purpose of this admission and before the expiration of the stated deadline. Applicants must note that the Postgraduate School will not be responsible for any misdirected transcript.
- All Higher Degree applicants that attended foreign Universities, where English language is not the medium of instruction, should submit to the Head of Department where the admission is being sought, evidence of their English Language proficiency, e.g. TOEFL or IELTS scores obtained within the validity period of such certifications.
- Applicants for the Postgraduate Diploma and Master Degree Programmes will be subjected to a qualifying examination, irrespective of the class of degree obtained. However, applicants from the University of Ilorin with a First Class or a Second Class, Upper Division (Honours), provided such applicant is not applying to a department that is different from the one in which he/she graduated from at the undergraduate level, will be exempted from the qualifying examination.
Supporting Documents
- Completed Application Form
- Acceptance Receipt
- O-Level Result
- University Transcript
- NYSC Certificate or Exemption Letter
- Marriage Certificate
How To Apply For Admission
STEP 1: Verify Your Details
- Click “VERIFY YOUR DETAILS” and enter your JAMB Registration Number, email, and phone number. Your surname and first name will appear automatically for confirmation.
- If you see “No match for the details provided,” please check back later.
STEP 2: Make Payment
- Click “Proceed” to access the school's preferred payment gateway (e.g. Remita, Paystack, Interswitch etc.). Pay using card, transfer, USSD, or bank.
- Note: Do not refresh your browser during payment to avoid multiple deductions. If unsure of payment status, wait a few hours or confirm with your bank.
STEP 3: Didn't Receive Login Details?
- Click “CONFIRM YOUR PAYMENT”, enter your JAMB Registration Number/Email, and validate.
- Login credentials will be re-sent to your email.
STEP 4: Log In
- Go to the login page, enter your JAMB Registration Number and password, then click Login.
STEP 5: Complete Application
Click “My Application”, fill in all required details, and review carefully.
STEP 6: Submit
- Click “Submit” once you’ve confirmed all information is correct.
OR
- Log in using https://portal.unilorin.edu.ng/ug/candidate/ OR visit https://portal.unilorin.edu.ng/ and click undergraduate portal. Candidates are strongly advised NOT TO USE ANY OTHER LINK.
- On the Admission Menu displayed on the left-hand side of the screen, click Pre-admission Screening Registration.
- Complete the displayed fields (e.g. JAMB Registration Number, Surname e.t.c).
- Candidates should click on the Get Details button for UTME/DE information.
- Complete all necessary details as required on the displayed page (e.g. ‘O’ level and/or A’ level grades or ‘AR’ for Awaiting results).
- Click on make payment button to go to Remita platform.
- Select your ATM card type (e.g. Visa or Master Card).
- Enter your ATM Card Number which is the 12 digits number on the card.
- Enter ATM card expiry date and the card CVV (the 3 digits on the reverse side of the Card).
- Lastly enter your card pin number; and Click on Pay.
Please note:
Candidates are advised not to refresh browser while the payment process is ongoing to avoid multiple deductions from your account. If unsure, please wait for some hours for the possibility of getting a debit alert from your bank. If you have any problem with your previous payment, enter your JAMB Registration Number on the Pre-Admission Screening Registration page and click ‘here’ to resolve it.
Upon successful payment,
- now click on ‘admission login’ on the left hand side of the undergraduate portal;
- enter your JAMB Registration Number and Surname; and click ‘login’
- Click on ‘next step’ button to continue, and complete all necessary details; and
- Click ‘submit’ button when all information have been accurately provided.
Note: Candidates who wish to upgrade from UTME to Direct Entry must do the upgrade on JAMB CAPS before starting the registration process on Unilorin portal and must ensure that the exact details of the upgrade to DE are effected on the Unilorin portal.
Direct Entry (DE) candidates
- The step-by-step Registration Procedures in B, (i – xi) above also apply to Direct Entry candidates.
- In addition to (I) above, Direct Entry candidates are required to select their highest academic qualification from the drop-down and click on ‘Save’ candidates are expected to click ‘OK’ on the dialog box when concluded.
Admission Contacts
Email: [email protected]
Phone : +234 805 087 8080
Apply For Admission
History
The university began as a University College affiliated to the oldest university in Nigeria in 1975 under the leadership of the then principal, Dr T.N. Tamuno. The first set of 200 students, selected following an entrance examination, were admitted into residence on 23 October 1976, while academic work started on 25 October after the Principal’s address. The University College started with three academic faculties of Arts, Science and Education.
In October 1977, the institution attained full autonomous status with appointment of the then Principal, Professor O.O Akinkugbe as first vice chancellor. The immediate past vice chancellor, Professor [Is-haq Oloyede] is the first Unilorin alumn
... read moreus to occupy that position. The staff and student populations now stand at 3,040 and 20,084 respectively.
The University started off on a portion of the temporary campus of the Kwara State Polytechnic known as the mini campus. This was the site of academic programmes in the Faculties of Arts, Science, Education, Engineering & Technology, Business and Social Sciences, and basic clinical sciences of the Health Sciences Faculty. It was the only campus of the university until January 1982 when more than 1000 students studying science were moved following completion of new Faculty blocks and residences for Natural Sciences and Engineering on the permanent campus site. From 1983, the law programme was started as a department in the Faculty of Business and Social Sciences. Following a 6-year hiatus, it was re-established in 1993 as a full fledged Faculty. The university now has 15 faculties: Arts, Agriculture, Environmental Sciences, Life Sciences, Management Sciences, Physical Sciences, Social Sciences, Communication and Information Sciences, Education, Engineering and Technology, Pharmaceutical Science, Veterinary Medicine, and Law; a College of Health Sciences (with 2 Faculties-Basic Medical and Clinical Sciences); two institutes (Institute of Education and Unilorin Sugar Research Institute); and the Postgraduate School. These faculties have over 60 academic departments. Undergraduate degree programmes are run for 3-5, or 6 years, depending on entry qualifications and discipline.
