JAMB Fixes June 13 For 2026 UTME Mop-Up Examination
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has scheduled Saturday, June 13, 2026, for the conduct of the mop-up examination for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, in a move designed to close out one of the most logistically complex examination cycles in the country’s recent history.
The announcement was made on Monday by the board’s Public Communication Advisor, Fabian Benjamin, in an official statement detailing arrangements for candidates who, despite presenting themselves and undergoing biometric verification, were unable to participate in the main examination held between April 16 and April 23, 2026.
According to the board, the mop-up exercise is strictly reserved for candidates affected by technical challenges, examination infractions, and biometric verification difficulties encountered during the main sitting.
“The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has fixed Saturday, 13th June, 2026, for the conduct of the UTME mop-up examination for all candidates who presented themselves and were biometrically verified for the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination but were unable to sit the examination for one reason or another,” the statement read.
JAMB described the rescheduled sitting as the concluding phase of the 2026 UTME cycle, intended to resolve every outstanding case involving candidates who duly registered and reported for the examination but were unable to write it.
“The mop-up examination represents the final phase of the annual UTME exercise and serves as an opportunity to address all outstanding examination challenges involving candidates who duly presented themselves but encountered difficulties in taking the examination,” the board added.
The UTME remains the single largest standardised examination in Sub-Saharan Africa, with the board administering tests to nearly two million candidates annually for admission into Nigerian universities, polytechnics, colleges of education, and other tertiary institutions. The Computer-Based Test format, which JAMB fully adopted in 2015, has remained subject to recurring disputes over technical glitches, server failures, and biometric mismatches, all of which have historically necessitated mop-up arrangements.
In its latest directive, the board instructed affected candidates to begin printing their Examination Notification Slips from June 6, 2026, and to familiarise themselves with their assigned examination centres ahead of the test date.
JAMB also issued a firm warning that the June 13 sitting represents the final window for participation in the 2026 UTME, with no further accommodation to be made for any candidate thereafter.
“Affected candidates are hereby urged to print their Examination Notification Slips, familiarise themselves with their examination centres, and make all necessary arrangements ahead of the examination date, as there will be no further opportunity for any candidate to sit the 2026 UTME after this mop-up exercise,” the statement said.
The conclusion of the mop-up exercise is expected to pave the way for the release of remaining results and the commencement of the 2026/2027 tertiary admission process, which traditionally follows the publication of UTME scores and the conduct of institutional post-UTME screenings.