The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has announced sweeping changes to the 2027 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination that will transform how over 1.8 million Nigerian candidates compete for university places annually.

Registrar Prof. Ishaq Oloyede said the new UTME format, which takes effect for candidates writing in 2027, replaces the existing Use of English paper with a critical thinking and analytical reasoning assessment designed to measure higher-order cognitive skills rather than rote memorisation.

Key changes

The examination will now consist of: Subjects of Choice (3 papers, 50 questions each), Critical Thinking and Reasoning (40 questions, new), and Mathematics remains compulsory for science and technology candidates. The total duration increases from 2 hours to 2 hours 30 minutes.

All 1,200 examination centres have been mandated to upgrade to computer-based testing by October 2026. Candidates will receive their scores within 24 hours via SMS and the JAMB portal, compared to the current 3-5 day wait.