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Board rules out extension of deadline as registrations end Monday

By Joseph Erunke

OVER 1.9 million candidates have so far registered for the ongoing 2024 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME and the Direct Entry, DE preparatory to seeking admission into various tertiary institutions in the country.

The development came as the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, said it would not extend the February 17, 2024 deadline for the registrations.

The board, which described the huge rate of registration within five weeks of commencement of sale of the forms as unprecedented in the history of UTME and DE registrations in the country insisted that its deadline was sacrosanct.

JAMB’s Head of Media and Information, Dr Fabian Benjamin, speaking to UTMEOFFICIAL.COM on the telephone, Sunday, said contrary to the fear that many prospective candidates would be left out if there was no extension, almost all the candidates had registered.

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Asked whether there would be an extension of the deadline given that many candidates were yet to register, Dr Benjamin said:” I can tell you that over 1.9 million candidates have so far registered as at last week. This is unprecedented in our history.”

He spoke further: “I disagree with you that many people were yet to register. If you had gone to most centres last Friday, you would see that they were empty without candidates coming for registration. What does that mean? It means people have registered.

“The number of candidates that have registered within these five weeks as We said, is unprecedented and given that most registration centres are empty now, we believe intending candidates have registered.”

Recall that the Registrar of JAMB, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, had at a meeting with education stakeholders in Abuja, announced that registration for both UTME and the DE would begin on January 13 and end on February 17, 2024.

JAMB, according to Prof. Oloyede, also officially proposed April 14 to April 4, 2024, as the Unified Tertiary Matriculations Examination, UTME dates

The JAMB board also disclosed that February 18th, 2024, was slated for mock examination which usually comes before the main UTME examinations.

But JAMB’s Mock examinations are always optional for candidates.

The nation’s tertiary institutions examination body had earlier announced that only candidates with National Identification Number, NIN, would be registered for the 2024 UTME.

“All candidates wishing to take the 2024 UTME must have the National Identification Number, NIN,” it had said.

But the board, at a press conference, addressed later by its Registrar, Ishaq Oloyede, announced the suspension of the NIN as a requirement for the registration of the 2024 UTME and DE.

Oloyede, who cited what he called “technical reasons”, however, said the NIN requirement would be mandatory in future exercises.

UTMEOFFICIAL.COM