The Registrar of Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Is-shaq Oloyede has given reason why the Board is yet to release conducted results from the ongoing 2023 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
Oloyede also disclosed that 20 Computer Based-Test (CBT) centers found wanting nationwide would be sanctioned for failure to comply with the guidelines governing the conduct of the UTME.
The JAMB registrar stated this in Lagos while monitoring the ongoing 2023 UTME in some centers and described the conduct as smooth despite the initial hitches experienced.
According to JAMB, 1,595,779 candidates registered for the 2023 UTME and Lagos recorded the highest number of applicants of 270, 573. The exam is been written in 708 centers nationwide.
He said before JAMB used to release the UTME results in batches each day of the exam as was done in 2021 and 2022 after analysing candidates performance for the day.
Oloyede explained that the nationwide delay experienced by candidates on Friday morning was caused by human error as a result the exam started one hour late.
He disclosed that as at Friday 1.5million candidates had taken the exam while 250,000 remaining applicants would write between Saturday, April 29th to May 3.
The JAMB also confirmed that examination malpractice has reduced drastically because of measures introduced to check and tackle the menace.
He added: The level of examination malpractice has gone down. The candidates and parents have realized the danger of engaging in examination malpractice. Even in Lagos, it is minimal. We have better devices now to monitor the UTME. The CBT operators have learnt their lessons.
The CBT centers have improved and the level of non-compliance has also reduced. The UTME was delayed on Friday for one hour nationwide due to human error.”
On why the Board has not released results since the UTME started in April, Oloyede said it was based on experts advice that the Board was doing the wrong thing of releasing results on a daily basis, which would not capture the true performance of the candidates.
This year, we will wait the end of the examination. We will analyse and calculate the mean. We will analyse the entire results to get the mean before releasing the results,” he stated.
Prof. Oloyede said the Board was anticipating disruption of the UTME because of the introduction of new measures, noting, “we were expecting there will be failure but so far, it has been smooth. I thank stakeholders for making the UTME smooth.”
The registrar said reports from other states indicate the conduct of the UTME was smooth, stating in Borno, Kwara and Niger states, the Board had problems and the candidates affected have been rescheduled for another date.
He advised such candidates to check the email or their phone to confirm when their exam have been rescheduled.
At some of the CBT centers visited, Oloyede queried the presence of parents at the gates and used the opportunity to interact with some of the candidates waiting for their turn to write the UTME.
Prof. Oloyede expressed disappointed with the conduct of 20 CBT centers and vowed that the Board sanction them, stating, “they failed to perform and they will be sanctioned.”