The Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, has clarified how candidates are assigned to Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), debunking claims that the Board arbitrarily posts candidates to towns they did not select.
Why You Choose an Exam Town, Not a Specific CBT Centre
- Candidates Pick Exam Towns: During UTME registration, CBT centres are grouped into Examination Towns. Candidates choose their preferred Examination Town, and JAMB's automated system randomly assigns them to an accredited CBT centre within that chosen town to prevent collusion and examination malpractice.
- Why Some Towns Become Unavailable: Every examination town has a fixed maximum CBT seating capacity. Once all centres in a particular examination town are filled up—which often happens when candidates wait until the final days of registration—that town closes on the drop-down menu, requiring late registrants to select the next available town.
- Register Early: Under no circumstance does JAMB transfer a candidate out of their selected examination town. To guarantee a centre close to your home, register as early as possible before your town reaches capacity.
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