The UNN cut off mark for Biochemistry for the 2026/2027 session is 160 in the UTME. That is the minimum the University of Nigeria, Nsukka set in its 2026/2027 screening notice for candidates who made UNN their first choice. UNN has not published a separate departmental cut off mark for Biochemistry this session or last, so any website quoting an “official” Biochemistry figure for UNN is guessing.
2027/2028 update: UNN cut-off marks usually stay the same from one year to the next, so the figures on this page are what 2027/2028 candidates should plan with. They come from the latest official notice (2026/2027). If the 2027/2028 notice changes anything, we will update this page.
At JAMB’s 2026 policy meeting, UNN’s declared minimum was reported as 200, and Biochemistry attracts many of the same high scorers who apply for Medicine and Pharmacy. Treat 160 as the score that lets you apply and plan for something well above 200. Below are the official figures, the UTME and O’level subjects, a worked aggregate example, the score I would aim for, and the steps from JAMB profile code to acceptance fee.
UNN cut off mark for Biochemistry 2027/2028 at a glance
| Item | Figure or rule | Status |
|---|---|---|
| UNN minimum UTME score to apply for screening | 160 (UNN as first choice) | Official: UNN Registrar’s notice, 13 July 2026 |
| UNN minimum declared at the JAMB 2026 policy meeting | 200 | Reported by Vanguard and News Central, 11 May 2026 |
| JAMB national minimum for universities | 150 | JAMB policy meeting, May 2026 |
| UNN departmental cut off for Biochemistry | Not published | No official figure for 2025/2026 or 2026/2027 |
| UTME subjects | English, Biology, Chemistry, plus Physics or Mathematics | JAMB brochure |
| Duration and campus | 4 years (3 for Direct Entry), Nsukka | Faculty of Biological Sciences |
| Safe target score (my advice) | 230 to 260 in the UTME | Advice, not a UNN figure |
Why two minimums? JAMB’s policy meeting list gave UNN as 200, but the university’s own screening notice invited everyone with 160 and above. The safest way to read it: UNN accepts screening applications from 160, its declared institutional benchmark at the policy meeting was 200, and competitive courses admit far above both. For screening purposes, 160 is the gate.
Has UNN released a departmental cut off mark for Biochemistry?
No. As of 29 October 2026, UNN has not published departmental cut off marks for any course for 2026/2027, and I found no official departmental list for 2025/2026 either. One blog headline in July 2026 announced “official departmental scores” for UNN, but the article contained no figures and cited no UNN document. The table below shows only what can be traced to a source.
| Session | UNN general minimum (UTME) | Biochemistry departmental figure | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026/2027 | 160 to apply; 200 declared at the JAMB policy meeting | Not published | UNN notice, 13 July 2026; Vanguard, 11 May 2026 |
| 2025/2026 | 160 (UTME) and 160 in screening for the advert window | Not published | UNN advert notice as reprinted by Myschool, 20 October 2025 |
Departmental cut offs are set after screening, when the university sees how many people applied for each course and how they scored. They move every year. Even if a figure from an earlier session turns up, use it only as a sign of competition, never as a promise.
JAMB subject combination and O’level requirements for Biochemistry at UNN
Use of English is compulsory for every UTME candidate. Your other three subjects and your O’level credits for Biochemistry come from the JAMB brochure entry for the course.
| Requirement | What you need | Note |
|---|---|---|
| UTME subjects | Use of English, Biology, Chemistry, plus Physics or Mathematics | JAMB brochure (Myschool reprint) |
| O’level | Five credits: English Language, Mathematics, Chemistry, Physics and Biology | JAMB brochure |
| Number of sittings | Not more than two | Entry requirements page, Faculty of Biological Sciences, UNN |
| Direct Entry | A’level passes in Chemistry, Biology (or Botany or Zoology) and Physics, plus the UTME requirements | UNN remark in the JAMB brochure |
| Other Direct Entry routes | NCE, ND or HND in related programmes plus the UTME requirements | General JAMB brochure rule; confirm with UNN |
JAMB lets you sit Mathematics instead of Physics in the UTME, yet the O’level list still includes Physics. So even if you write Mathematics in JAMB, you need a credit in Physics in WAEC or NECO. I would write Physics in the UTME anyway, because it keeps Medicine, Pharmacy and Medical Laboratory Science open if you change your mind later.
A credit means C6 or better. WAEC, NECO and NABTEB results are all accepted for UTME purposes, and you can combine two sittings. If you plan to rewrite a subject, do it before the screening window, because candidates awaiting results were not eligible for UNN’s 2026/2027 screening.
How UNN screening and aggregate work, with a worked example
UNN’s 2026/2027 screening was an online registration with document uploads. The notice described no written or CBT test, gave no test date and did not publish how candidates are ranked.
| Item | UNN 2026/2027 screening (official notice, 13 July 2026) |
|---|---|
| Who could apply | Candidates who chose UNN as first choice in the 2026 UTME and scored 160 or more; Direct Entry candidates who chose UNN first |
| Fees | ₦2,000 application plus ₦3,300 processing (₦5,300 in total), paid through Remita |
| Window | Opened Wednesday 15 July 2026, closed midnight Wednesday 5 August 2026 |
| O’level upload | To JAMB CAPS and the UNN portal by 5 August 2026 |
| Awaiting results | Not eligible: results had to be available |
| Age | Candidates under 16 by 30 September 2026 were told not to apply |
| Written test | None described in the notice; it was an online screening registration |
| Uploads | Birth certificate, LGA identification, testimonial, First School Leaving Certificate, JAMB result slip, O’level result(s), each under 100KB |
UNN has never published its aggregate formula in the notices I could open. The method most often reported by education blogs is 60% of your UTME score plus 40% of an O’level score, where four relevant subjects are graded A1 = 100, B2 = 90, B3 = 80, C4 = 70, C5 = 60 and C6 = 50. This is a commonly used blog method, not an official UNN formula, so use it only to see where you stand.
Take a Biochemistry candidate with 248 in the UTME and these grades in English, Mathematics, Chemistry and Biology: B3, B2, A1, B2.
- O’level points: 80 + 90 + 100 + 90 = 360 out of 400
- UTME part: 248 × 0.6 = 148.8
- O’level part: 360 × 0.4 = 144
- Estimated aggregate: 148.8 + 144 = 292.8 out of 400
Whatever weights UNN actually uses, an A1 in Chemistry and a B2 in Biology add as much as many extra UTME marks would. If your O’level is mostly C grades, you need a higher UTME score to make up for it.
Admission odds: what UTME score to aim for in UNN Biochemistry
Biochemistry is one of the busier courses in the Faculty of Biological Sciences. It shares its UTME subjects with Medicine, Pharmacy and Medical Laboratory Science, so many candidates who narrowly miss those courses end up competing for it, and some put it first from the start. It was not among the courses in the reprinted part of UNN’s 2025/2026 advert (vacancy) list, unlike Plant Science and Zoology, which had more than a hundred unfilled places each.
My advice, not a UNN figure: aim for 230 to 260 in the UTME, with mostly A and B grades in the five O’level subjects. At 250 or above with strong grades, you are in a comfortable position on merit. Between 200 and 230, your O’level grades and state of origin start to decide things, and you should think about a second plan. Below 200, Biochemistry at UNN is a long shot in a normal year.
How places are shared also matters. Federal universities fill courses under a national guideline:
- Merit: the federal guideline usually quoted for federal universities is 45% of places on merit, filled from the top scorers in each course regardless of state. UNN has not published its own split.
- Catchment: about 35% under the same guideline. UNN’s catchment is generally understood to be the South-East states, but UNN has not published a list online, so confirm on JAMB CAPS or with the admissions office before you count on it.
- ELDS: about 20% for educationally less developed states. This is a federal designation and UNN does not publish its own list, so I will not name states here.
- State of origin: what counts is the state on your JAMB profile, backed by the LGA identification letter you upload during screening.
How to apply for Biochemistry at UNN: step by step
Deadline
JAMB told public universities to finish 2026 admissions on or before 31 October 2026, and candidates have four weeks to accept or reject an offer on CAPS. If UNN has offered you a place, respond now.
- Get your JAMB profile code: text NIN, a space and your 11-digit NIN (for example, NIN 12345678901) to 55019 or 66019 from the phone line linked to your NIN. JAMB replies with the profile code you use to register.
- Register for the UTME with the right subjects: pick Biochemistry at the University of Nigeria as your first choice. UNN only screens first-choice candidates, so a second-choice listing will not get you onto its portal.
- Upload your O’level to CAPS: do it at a JAMB-accredited CBT centre as soon as your WAEC or NECO result is out. In 2026 UNN wanted results on CAPS and on its own portal by the screening deadline.
- Register for UNN screening: go to unn.edu.ng, click UNN Portal, then Prospective Students and the screening form. Enter your JAMB registration number, generate and pay the Remita invoice, come back and enter the number again, fill in your personal and O’level details (centre and exam numbers), upload your documents, review, submit and print the acknowledgement slip. You cannot change your date of birth afterwards.
- Check CAPS: log in at efacility.jamb.gov.ng, click Check Admission Status, then Access my CAPS and Admission Status. If UNN has offered you a place, read the course name carefully before you click Accept.
- Finish with UNN: print your JAMB admission letter, then pay the UNN acceptance fee on the university portal and follow the clearance instructions. The fee has been reported as ₦25,000 by an education blog, but I could not find it in an official UNN notice, so confirm the figure on the portal before paying.
Our JAMB CAPS guide explains each CAPS status, including what a Transfer Approval means if UNN offers you a different course.
What you study in Biochemistry at UNN
Biochemistry is the chemistry of living things: how cells build and break down molecules, how enzymes work, how genes are copied and read, and how this goes wrong in disease. At UNN the course is run by the Department of Biochemistry in the Faculty of Biological Sciences on the Nsukka campus.
- History: the UNN Senate approved an honours degree in Biochemistry on 26 March 1971, and the department separated from Chemistry on 1 July 1971. The first intake of 14 students started in 1971/72 under the pioneer head, Dr A. U. Ogan.
- Duration: four years for UTME entrants and three years for Direct Entry, the pattern the faculty states for its B.Sc. programmes.
- Typical content: general biology and chemistry in year one, then metabolism, enzymology, molecular biology, nutritional and clinical biochemistry, research methods and a final-year project. Check the department’s course modules for the current list.
- Combined honours: the faculty also runs Biochemistry/Microbiology, Biochemistry/Plant Science and Biotechnology and Biochemistry/Zoology and Environmental Biology, with Biochemistry as the stress area. Our guide to Combined Biological Sciences at UNN explains how these work.
- Accreditation: I did not find a published NUC accreditation result for this programme, so ask the department if that matters to you.
If your UTME is close, revise with the JAMB Chemistry syllabus and the JAMB Biology syllabus. Those two papers carry most of the weight for this course.
Career paths and related courses at UNN
Biochemistry graduates work in pharmaceutical and food companies, in quality control for breweries and beverage firms, in hospital and research laboratories, with regulators, and in teaching and research after a master’s degree. Many also use the degree as a base for postgraduate study in molecular biology, toxicology or public health.
Related courses at UNN worth comparing before you register:
- Microbiology: the same UTME subjects, with a stronger industrial and medical microbiology slant.
- Pharmacy: a six-year Pharm.D. that asks for Physics in the UTME. UNN also had a new Pharmacology programme reported as NUC-approved for 2026/2027.
- Medical Laboratory Science: the professional route into hospital laboratories, usually more competitive.
- Pure and Industrial Chemistry: a good fit if you enjoy the chemistry side more than the biology.
UNN cut off mark for Biochemistry: frequently asked questions
Is 230 enough for Biochemistry in UNN? It clears both the 160 screening minimum and the 200 benchmark, and with good O’level grades it gives you a fair chance. UNN has not published a Biochemistry cut off, so I would treat 230 as the bottom of the safe range and aim higher if you are rewriting the UTME.
Can I use awaiting result for UNN Biochemistry screening? No. UNN’s 2026/2027 notice said candidates awaiting results were not eligible, and O’level results had to be uploaded to CAPS and the UNN portal by 5 August 2026.
Can I write Mathematics instead of Physics in JAMB for Biochemistry at UNN? The JAMB brochure allows Biology, Chemistry and either Physics or Mathematics. You still need an O’level credit in Physics, though, so check your WAEC or NECO result before you choose.
Does UNN accept two sittings for Biochemistry? Yes. The Faculty of Biological Sciences lists five credits at not more than two sittings, which you must upload together on CAPS and the UNN portal.
Sources and updates
The 160 minimum, fees, dates, eligibility rules and portal steps come from UNN’s 2026/2027 screening notice signed by the Registrar on 13 July 2026. The 200 figure comes from Vanguard’s report of the JAMB 2026 policy meeting (11 May 2026), and the national 150 minimum, the 31 October 2026 admission deadline and the four-week acceptance window from the News Agency of Nigeria’s report of the same meeting. The 2025/2026 figures come from Myschool’s reprint of UNN’s advert notice (20 October 2025). UTME subjects, O’level and Direct Entry rules come from the JAMB brochure entry for Biochemistry as reprinted by Myschool, and the two-sitting rule and combined honours list from the Faculty of Biological Sciences website. Department history is from the UNN Department of Biochemistry website. The aggregate method is a blog method (Studentship), not UNN policy, and the ₦25,000 acceptance fee comes from an O3schools page without an official source. The safe target score is my own advice. Checked on 29 October 2026; this page will be updated if UNN publishes departmental cut off marks.
I am Jude Chinecherem, a final-year MBBS student at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I know what it feels like to want an education your family cannot afford. When my parents could not pay for my schooling, I had to learn how to find scholarships and work the system out on my own, with nobody to guide me. I came out the other side, and now I share everything I learned so the next student does not have to figure it out alone. This is the advice I wish someone had given me back then.
