JAMB announces mop-up examinations for absentee candidates

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The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has announced a fresh round of mop-up examinations to accommodate the over 5.6 per cent of candidates who missed the just-concluded 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination.

JAMB Registrar, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, made the disclosure on Wednesday during a stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja, stating that the initiative will cover all affected candidates, regardless of the reason for their absence.

He said, “This time, we are creating a new mop-up. Even those who missed the earlier exam due to absence will get another opportunity.

“It’s not extraordinary. In any serious system, when students miss an exam, they’re allowed to make up—provided there’s no abuse.”

Oloyede emphasised that the UTME is a placement test, not a measure of intelligence or academic potential. “Its purpose is to rank candidates for limited admission slots, not to test how smart someone is,” he clarified.

Addressing growing criticism and conspiracy theories about the examination process, Oloyede firmly rejected claims of ethnic bias or administrative incompetence.

He stated, “I take responsibility, not because I failed, but because that’s leadership.

“I didn’t even realise people viewed issues around me through ethnic lenses. We must rise above such profiling.”

Oloyede als praised both candidates and staff for their resilience amid logistical difficulties.

“We had limited space. We knew if we wasted more time grieving the challenges, students would lose their opportunity,” he said.

The special mop-up exam will be scheduled soon, and JAMB says it remains committed to transparency and fairness in admissions. Punch