Part 2: Common Mistakes that Leads to University Admission Failure: JAMB UTME Application and Admission Failure

THIS is a continuation of our series: Common Mistakes that Leads to University Admission Failure, How to Avoid Them in Your Jamb 2015 UTME.

If you missed the first part – Click here to read it.
Update: Read the Part 3 and Part 4 Here.

Prospective students seeking admission into Nigeria universities must apply through Jamb. Application for JAMB exam usually takes place between November to February every year. It has been noticed that those who apply early enough do not usually run into trouble. If you will be writing jamb I will advise that you apply early enough. In 2011 exam, many candidates institution were changed without their knowledge. Most of these cases if not all happened to late applicants.

Requirements

 

 

In an attempt to strengthen the UTME exam, Jamb introduced other requirement into UTME. Experiences have shown that these requirements and other basic requirements play a major role in determining the results of candidates in last edition of UTME.

Let’s focus on these requirements and how you can ensure that you are on the saver side.

General Entry Requirement for JAMB

In addition to the specific entry requirements into each Institution, faculty or department, the following are the general entry requirements approved for admission into first degree courses for both UTME and Direct Entry candidates.

1. Applicants must write the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and attain an acceptable standard in the Use of English (Compulsory) and three subjects relevant to the proposed course of study as set out in the relevant Chapters of this Brochure.

2. Candidate must in addition to attaining an acceptable standard in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination obtain one of the following qualifications.

(a) National Examinations Council (NECO)/ West African Examinations Council (WAEC) Senior School Certificate (SSC) or the School Certificate/General Certificate of Education (SSC/GCE ) or equivalents with credit passes in Five (5) subjects relevant to the course and obtained at not more than two sittings; except where otherwise specified.

(b) Grade II Teacher’s Certificate (TC II) with credit or merit passes in at least Five (5) subjects.

Please Note That TC II is not acceptable for some courses in some Universities.

(c) National Technical Certificate (NTC), National Business Certificate (NBC) with credit passes in Five (5) subjects relevant to the course and obtained at not more than two sittings. For the purpose of NTC/NBC, a credit in any General Education subjects, trade related subjects and trade component subjects is equivalent to a credit in a subject.

A credit pass in Mathematics is required for all Science based and Social Science courses except where it is stated otherwise.

4. A credit pass in English Language is required for all courses except where it is stated otherwise.

5. Please note that a matriculated student in any University is not eligible to sit for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) except those who are transferring from foreign Universities.

Biometric Thumb Printing

In 2011, JAMB introduced biometric thumb printing. Initially, there are lot of challenges that accompany the use of this device in registration and examination. However it appears now that JAMB has leaved above these challenges and biometric thumb printing has come to stay.

JAMB registrar Professor Ojerinde said biometric thumb printing is meant to checkmate impersonation and late coming.
According to him if your thumb printing reveals that you enter the exam hall late, your result will be withheld. In the last UTME, a lot of candidates were frustrated because the cybercafé that register them did not capture their thumb very well.

Some candidates were denied access to write the exam. So if you are registering, make sure your thumb is properly captured and that it is clear.

Also, make sure that the cybercafé you are using has successfully done so in the past. Make sure that your thumb is clear at the point of registration. If you do this it, is certain that you will not be denied access to the exam center.

Passport

JAMB requires that applicants should use passport less than 3 months. In many situations, few candidates consider this. Some even cut out picture and use it for registration. In some cases, after registering you now find out that the picture in the print out do not match the present look of the person.

The implication is that during exam, the invigilator may delay your entrance and claim that you are impersonating. Such delay can destabilize you psychologically and affect your performance, it is noteworthy too that passport you use for registration is what will be on your admission letter.

In some cases, the university may question the authenticity if the passport is not clear. In another word, you may lose your hard earn admission. Some scholarship boards too use to screen out applicants with unclear passport. Make sure your passport is recent, at most 3 months.

JAMB Personal Data

 

 

In this section, we will focus only on the names. Some students just apply using any name they like. Others because of change in religion use their new religion name, while others abbreviate their name. For others it is error during application.

All these discrepancies come with a price – admission denial. I will cite two examples to drive home my point here. A guy uses his Christian name as his name in his WAEC. When he changed to a Muslim he was given an Islamic name. When he registered for JAMB, he now used his Islamic name.

This guy passed JAMB and post UTME and was admitted to UNIBEN. However, he was not cleared because of the difference in the name in his O level and JAMB result.

What saved him was because he did affidavit and publish the change of name in a newspaper much earlier. Even with that it took the intervention of his lecturer uncle to save the situation. In another instance, a guy use his full

native name while applying for WAEC, during JAMB he abbreviation the long native name. After he was admitted the university refuses to clear him that the O level results and JAMB belong to different persons.

Imagine after passing JAMB & post UTME! So, what I am saying is that as much as possible, avoid discrepancies in your name. Make sure you use your full name i.e. whatever you use in WAEC is being used for JAMB and during post UTME application.

If for any reason, you want to change your name make sure you published it in a newspaper early enough before you write the JAMB exam otherwise the published item will not be accept as evidence. Also make sure you did an affidavit to reflect that and that it date back to a period you even write your JAMB.

If for any reason you don’t like your native name instead of abbreviating it, use the initial but if your native name is your first name than you have to use it like that. So, as you are applying for O level, decide now what you want your name to look like take note that if your name is too long JAMB will ask you to abbreviate it. So use the initial instead of abbreviating the name.

Don’t forget too that NECO usually drop the third name in their result so decide now which of your name should be your first name.

KEYPOINT: Make sure your name in JAMB tally with the one in your O Level. If you gave your form to a vendor (as in most cases), make sure your names are clearly written in capital letter.

Before submitting the form asks the vendor if he sees the name clearly. Take note that you cannot edit your names, date of birth, sex, state and local government area. A word is enough for the wise. You don’t want to lose your hard earn admission because of an avoidable mistake.

Choice of Center

In the UTME form, applicants are allowed to choose their exam state and town/region. A careful look at 2013 UTME shows that JAMB has further streamline the region by creation additional localities.

There are certain points you need to keep in mind when choosing your center. Make sure that the center is easily accessible. For instance, if you are leaving for the exam on the same day can you get there by there by 7.30am?

If you arrive late, you will not be allowed to write. Even if you are allowed to write JAMB will still cancel your result or withheld some of your subject(s) because your thumb printing will show when you enter the exam hall.

If you are living the previous day, do you have where to put up? So, you have to make such arrangement earlier.

Another thing to consider when choosing center is if the area or center has been short listed by JAMB as examination malpractice center or state.

In 2011 UTME, JAMB withheld about 22,664 results of for examination malpractices and further scrutiny. Registrar and Chief Executive of JAMB, Professor Dibu Ojerinde said the results of about 7,160 candidates mostly from Lagos, Rivers and Abia examination centres were questionable because of what he described as “centres of excellence” and that the results would be subjected to further scrutiny before they are released.

He stated further that a total of 15, 160, representing 1.014 % of candidates, who participated in the examination were involved in exam malpractices.

So if you put in for these centers don’t be surprised if your result is withheld or cancelled. You know, JAMB is very serious about fighting examination malpractice because they want to save face against the conduct of post UTME.

Even if you live in area mark as malpractice zone, you may want to go where there is no such scrutiny. It will be worth the stress and effort.

To be continue…. If you missed the first part – Click Here to read it.

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