JAMB clarifies qualification of university students for UTME
Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board JAMB
Abdullateef Fowewe
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has fired back at viral social media distortions claiming that university students are barred from registering for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) or Direct Entry (DE), calling them “deliberate misrepresentation” by “unscrupulous self-styled education advocates.”
In a statement signed on Wednesday by Dr Fabian Benjamin, JAMB’s spokesperson, the board clarified its guidelines amid the uproar.
“It is not an offence for a candidate to register for the UTME/DE while still enrolled in an institution. However, failure to disclose such status constitutes an offence,” the statement emphasised.
Disclosure ensures that any prior admission “automatically ceases to subsist” upon securing a new one, upholding the law against holding “two admissions concurrently.”
JAMB highlighted risks of non-compliance, noting its systems can detect prior matriculations.
“Any candidate discovered to have failed to disclose such status stands the risk of forfeiting both opportunities,” it warned.
The board also pointed to “recent findings” of matriculated students acting as “professional examination takers,” making mandatory disclosure key to swift action.
The statement urged caution, “The Board therefore urges the public to be cautious of these so-called education advocates who are perpetually eager to mislead candidates and parents for selfish gain.”
It advised reading official guidelines directly, dismissing the misinformation as a ploy “aimed solely at attracting traffic to their social media platforms.”
JAMB stressed its mandate to prevent multiple matriculations, calling the guidelines “unambiguous and straightforward.”
