JAMB announces dates for 2020 UTME

By Kanayo Umeh, Abuja

24 December 2019 | 4:00 am

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has fixed March 14 to April 4, 2020 for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, who disclosed this at a meeting with commissioners of education from the 36 states of the federation and other stakeholders yesterday in Abuja, also announced January13 to February17 for UTME and direct entry registration. Oloyede said the registration for mock examination would be from January 13 to February 1, and the exam on February 18.

He lamented the proliferation of computer-based test (CBT) centres across the country, urging the education commissioners to lead in ensuring that the centres were regulated.

The JAMB registrar explained that the board has partnered with National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), Computer Professional Registration Council of Nigeria (CPN) and Galaxy Backbone in order to eliminate double registration and also ensure a hitch-free examination.He said “ Everybody must rise up and support NIM. We are also bringing in Computer Professional Registration Council of Nigeria (CPN) to help in monitoring the Computer Based Centres (CBT).

“ We also have the advantage of the Galaxy Backbone. Each of the CBT centres have been mapped with NIMC enrolment centres. “ Over 40 per cent of candidates have already obtained their NIN. This will ease our job because those who have not been able to registered can now be transported to NIMC centres at the point of registration,” he said.

According to him “Our experience last year showed that some candidates registered multiple times so as to perpetrate impersonation. This is
because exam malpractices start at the point of registration. “JAMB needs full collaborations of states education commissioners to help sensitise candidates in their various states on the need and importance of the NIN for 2020 registration,” he added. Oloyede added that the board had put in place a Central Admission Processing System (CAPS) designed to prevent institutions from unilaterally changing or proposing a candidate for admission into the programme or courses other than his/her chosen course.

He observed that some institutions had devised a method of offering admission to candidates outside CAPS on their designated portals
saying any institution doing this was putting the future of such candidate into jeopardy.