JAMB makes clarification on UTME locations

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has issued a major clarification regarding the registration process and selection of examination towns by candidates.

The Board emphasised that candidates are free to register from any location in the country and may select any examination town nationwide, irrespective of their registration point.

JAMB’s Public Communication Advisor, Dr. Fabian Benjamin, in a statement released on Wednesday in Abuja, corrected an erroneous agency report which claimed that candidates could not sit for the examination outside their state of registration.

He further clarified that candidates have the liberty to select their examination town from any location across the country, regardless of where they registered. For example, a candidate who registers in Lagos can choose to take the examination in Sokoto or any other location.

The statement read:
“The Public Communication Advisor of JAMB wishes to address a misleading publication regarding the UTME examination, which inaccurately claims that candidates cannot sit for the examination outside their state of registration. This information, widely disseminated by NAN, is incorrect.

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“In a recent interview with a NAN reporter, I clarified that candidates are not restricted to taking the examination within their state of registration.

“They have the flexibility to register anywhere in the country and select any town nationwide from any registration point. Computer-Based Test Centres are organized according to towns for convenience, allowing candidates to choose the town where they wish to take the examination.

“For example, if a candidate selects Garki as their examination town, they must take the exam at a centre within Garki and cannot be posted outside the town, as has been wrongly alleged at times.

“It is crucial to rectify this misunderstanding to prevent confusion among candidates. Those who have registered for the UTME and selected examination towns outside their state of registration are fully permitted to sit for the examination in their chosen towns.

“This flexibility is designed to accommodate candidates’ preferences and ensure they can choose a location that is convenient for them.

“We urge the public to disregard the erroneous report from NAN in its entirety.”

Meanwhile, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has alerted the public to the circulation of false, misleading, and fraudulent messages targeting candidates registered for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

The Board disclosed that these messages are being disseminated by suspected fraudsters aiming to deceive and defraud unsuspecting individuals.

Dr. Fabian Benjamin revealed that the perpetrators have exploited the UTME’s numerical code, 8863, and merged it with the Board’s official short code, 55019, to create a fake code that mimics JAMB’s messaging system.

He explained that, through this fraudulent scheme, the fraudsters have been sending misleading messages to candidates, falsely claiming that there have been manipulations in their JAMB details and urging them to contact certain individuals who would “assist” in resolving these fabricated issues.

“We want to emphasize that these messages are not from JAMB. Security agencies have been notified and are actively tracking the perpetrators behind this scam.

“Candidates are strongly advised to ignore such messages. This is a common tactic employed by fraudsters seeking to exploit the examination period to deceive and defraud innocent candidates.

“The public is urged to remain vigilant and critically assess the messages they receive. Any communication that does not align with JAMB’s official channels or contains suspicious language or instructions should be treated as fraudulent,” Benjamin stated.