On April 24, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) commenced the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) for 2,083,600 candidates across 887 Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres nationwide. However, candidates, parents and observers have lamented over alleged posting to far away centres and timing issues, but JAMB maintains stance on procedures. PAUL OKAH reports.
After months of preparation, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) kick-started the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) for 2,083,600 registered candidates (including 41,026 candidates below 16 years) across 887 Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres nationwide on Thursday, April 24, which is expected to end on Monday, May 5.
With over 10,000 officials deployed for the exam, 1,000 registered candidates are expected to sit for the UTME in different centres every day, which is divided into four sessions – that is 250 candidates per session. While the first session starts at 8am, the second session starts at 10:30am. The third session starts at 1pm, while the fourth session for the day starts at 3.30pm.
As at Wednesday, April 30, over 1.6 million candidates had participated in the exam, while JAMB delisted five CBT centres (two in Kano, two in Sokoto and one in Imo state) over failure to meet the stringent technical standards required for the ongoing UTME, warning that any centre that fails its ethical or technical standards, regardless of ownership, will be blacklisted.
Furthermore, 501 visually-impaired candidates are also writing the UTME in 11 disability-specialised centres across the country, including Lagos, Edo, Oyo, Kaduna and the FCT. The Board disclosed that it spends over N200,000 on every deaf candidate registered for the examination, adding that it has arrested over 40 impersonators since the exam started.
However, candidates for the first session of the UTME, slated for 8am, have lamented being asked to present themselves for screening by 6:30am, claiming they are posted to CBT centres very far from their locations. But the Board has maintained that early arrival is necessary for the verification and clearance of 250 candidates for each session and that candidates are posted to CBT centres close to chosen examination towns.
Parents have also tackled JAMB over the first session slated for 8am, saying they have inconvenienced themselves to travel several kilometres with their teenage children at odd hours in order to meet up with the 6:30am timeframe, even as many have recommended outright cancellation of results over glitches affecting their children’s performance.
Candidates speak
Technical failures, poor coordination, faraway posting, early timing and inadequate infrastructure have been recurring complaints among candidates, with frustrated candidates at Abimbola Excel School CBT centre in Elesin, Amuloko, Ona Ara Local Government Area of Oyo state, going as far as destroying plastic chairs, computers and other facilities in the centre; following a technical glitch that prevented the scheduled UTME from holding on April 25.
Nevertheless, speaking with our reporter, a 17-year-old candidate at the CBT centre in Government Secondary School, Wuse Zone 3, Peter Uchenna, said he did not experience any glitch in the exam, hoping his performance will be able to secure him an admission.
“We started at 8am. The examination went on smoothly. This is my first time and I enjoyed the experience. My computer did not malfunction. There were no technical issues. I was nervous at first because of instructions not to touch anything on the system, but the questions were familiar. Though I encountered a brief technical glitch during login, it was resolved quickly and it did not affect my exam time,” he said.
Similarly, a 19 year old girl from Plateau, Lengkat Nendyi Jennifer, who was among the first batch for the exam on April 25, said she did not experience any glitch, despite writing the exam for the second time, hoping her performance will guarantee her admission to study Law in Nasarawa State University.
Supervisors speak
Speaking with Blueprint Weekend in Abuja, Tuesday, a supervisor at the Rosa Mystica Academy CBT Centre, Kubwa, Salihu Mustapha, commended candidates for their punctuality, revealing the examination started at 8am, after biometric screening.
“The candidates came out early. We started accreditation around 6:30am and the examination started promptly at 8am. With the way the examination is going, I do not envisage any challenge in the remaining days. I commend JAMB for its plan that has ensured everything went well. No technical issue was recorded during the examination,” he said.
Similarly, a supervisor at the Ade-Ola Int’l Schools, Kubwa, Dr. Aminu Abdullahi, commended JAMB, UTME candidates and the center for their efforts in making the examination run smoothly.
“We started on time. The candidates came timely. The centre itself and the management are very cooperative and everything is running smoothly. JAMB is always evolving; they always maintain standards. The only emphasis is on punctuality and the candidates and ad-hoc staff came in early,” he said.
Senate to create more CBT centres
Meanwhile, on April 25, Senator representing Katsina South and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFUND, Mohammed Muntari Dandutse, during the monitoring of the ongoing UTME at Aduvie International School, Jahi, Abuja, said budgetary provisions will be made in the 2026 fiscal year for the establishment of CBT centres in all the 774 local government areas of the federation.
“In making it easy for candidates seeking admissions into universities or other tertiary institutions through UTME, the ICT centres must be made available in all the 774 LGAs across the country. I am from Katsina South senatorial district, where only two out of the 11 LGAs have ICT centres for UTME.