The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has clarified that candidates currently enrolled in universities or other tertiary institutions are not prohibited from registering for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) or Direct Entry (DE), provided they declare their matriculation status during registration.
In a statement issued by the Office of the Registrar on January 28, 2026, JAMB said claims suggesting that undergraduates cannot write UTME are misleading distortions of its official guidelines for the 2026 examination cycle.
According to the Board, all candidates registering for the 2026 UTME/DE are required to disclose any existing admission or matriculation status, where applicable. Failure to make such disclosure, JAMB warned, constitutes an offence.
JAMB explained that disclosure does not bar a candidate from seeking fresh admission. Rather, once a candidate secures a new admission through UTME or Direct Entry, any previous admission automatically lapses, in line with the law which forbids candidates from holding multiple admissions simultaneously.
“The law is explicit that no candidate is permitted to hold two admissions concurrently,” the Board stated.
The examination body also expressed concern over what it described as the growing involvement of some matriculated students in professional examination malpractice, noting that mandatory disclosure helps the Board take swift action when such cases are detected.
While JAMB’s system is capable of identifying prior matriculation, it cautioned that candidates who fail to disclose their status risk losing both their existing admission and the new opportunity.
The Board further urged parents and candidates to be wary of what it called self-styled education advocates who circulate false narratives online for personal gain, advising the public to rely only on official guidelines and verified information from JAMB.
The statement was signed by Fabian Benjamin, PhD, JP, Public Communication Advisor to JAMB.
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