What the UTME is
The Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, universally called JAMB or the JAMB UTME, is the single national entrance test for admission into any undergraduate programme at a Nigerian university, polytechnic, monotechnic or college of education. It is conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, a federal body established by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board Act. A candidate does not sit institution specific entrance examinations for a first degree in Nigeria; the UTME score, together with O-level credits and any post-UTME screening a particular institution runs, is what the Central Admissions Processing System (CAPS) uses to place candidates into courses.
The UTME is the largest single examination in West Africa by candidate volume. JAMB registered 2,243,816 candidates for the 2026 cycle, a 10.5 per cent rise on the 2025 figure, and over 2.2 million sat the paper across accredited Computer-Based Test centres between 16 April and the end of the exam window.
How the paper is structured
The UTME is delivered exclusively as a Computer-Based Test and has been CBT only since 2015. Every candidate answers 180 multiple choice questions in a two hour sitting for a total of 400 marks. English Language is compulsory and carries 60 questions; the remaining three subjects are chosen from JAMB’s brochure to match the intended degree programme, and each carries 40 questions. A candidate reading medicine typically takes English, Biology, Chemistry and Physics; a candidate reading law takes English, Literature in English, Government and one of Christian or Islamic Religious Studies, and so on. Selecting a subject combination that does not match the target course is one of the most common reasons an otherwise strong candidate is not offered admission through CAPS.
JAMB also offers the optional JAMB Mock examination in the weeks before the main paper, which lets candidates practise on the same CBT platform they will face on exam day. Candidates who opt in to the Mock pay a higher registration fee, as shown in the data above.
Who can sit the UTME
A candidate must not be less than 16 years old by 30 September of the year of the examination. There is no cap on the number of attempts: many candidates re-sit the UTME to improve their score for a competitive course. Foreign candidates seeking admission to a Nigerian tertiary institution register through the same JAMB portal.
The UTME score is only half of the admission story. Nigerian universities also demand five Senior School Certificate credits at C6 or above, including English Language and Mathematics for the vast majority of courses. These credits come from the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), the National Examinations Council (NECO) SSCE, or an equivalent accepted board, and may be combined across at most two sittings at most institutions. Competitive programmes, notably medicine, law and engineering, often demand a single sitting.
Direct Entry as an alternative
Applicants who already hold A-Level passes, an Ordinary National Diploma, a Nigeria Certificate in Education, an HND or a degree may seek admission into the 200 level of a university course through JAMB Direct Entry (DE) instead of the UTME. DE registration for the 2026 cycle opened on 2 March 2026 and closed on 25 April 2026. DE candidates do not sit the CBT paper; their credentials, together with any institution level screening, form the basis of admission through CAPS.
Fees and registration
Registration for the 2026 UTME cost NGN 7,200 for candidates who did not sit the Mock, and NGN 8,700 for those who opted in. The N7,200 fee covers the JAMB application charge, a copy of the year’s recommended reading text, the CBT centre’s registration and UTME service charges and bank charges. Because JAMB’s own domain is intermittently unreachable from outside Nigeria, the fee breakdown above is drawn from Premium Times and Businessday Nigeria; before quoting a specific cycle’s fee to a candidate, re-verify against the current guidelines on jamb.gov.ng or the JAMB e-Facility portal linked above.
On exam day
Report to the CBT centre listed on your printed examination slip at least an hour before the reported sitting time. Bring the printed slip and the same national identification you registered with. Phones, smartwatches, calculators, textbooks and any writing material are not allowed inside the hall; JAMB centres search candidates before admission.
Sources and re-verification
Every dated fact and figure on this page carries a citation in the data above. The primary source is the JAMB e-Facility portal and JAMB press briefings; where the JAMB domain was not reachable at the time of writing, credible Nigerian outlets (Premium Times, Businessday Nigeria, Channels Television and Myschool NG’s official cycle summary) were used and are cited inline. Re-verify volatile facts against jamb.gov.ng before relying on them for a live application cycle.