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“Only in Nigeria!” — Expert Laments 3-Exam Requirement for University Admission

Yomi Fawehinmi, a Canadian education and human resources expert, has confessed that he is unaware of any other country in the world where students must take three exams to get admission to a college or university.

He said this in an interview with Channels TV, where experts advocated for a reform of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), which has structural issues that have hampered pupils.

“I’ve taught at five institutions around the world. I don’t know of somewhere else in the world where kids have to take three exams to get into a college or university.”

“In Nigeria, students sit for WAEC, NECO, JAMB, and Post-UME. In the United States (U.S.), students take the SAT, which they can retake numerous times. “In Canada, students complete their final school exams with no additional entrance test,” Fawehinmi stated.

According to him, Nigeria is unique in that it requires numerous tests for university entrance. Compared to other nations, students face an extremely high number of assessments before being accepted.

This raises questions about why Nigerian students are subjected to unnecessary testing, especially because WAEC results are recognized internationally for admittance in nations such as the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and Australia.

“Why does a student from Queen’s College in Lagos need to sit three exams to gain admission to nearby Unilag but only WAEC to enter a top-ranking university in the UK?”

“We are burdening young people with unneeded exams. WAEC is internationally recognized, but why is it insufficient for Nigerian universities? Fawehinmi inquired.

JAMB is a rating exam, not an achievement exam.

He also clarified the essential distinction between an achievement exam, which assesses subject competence, and a ranking exam, which ranks students based on their performance in order to win limited university seats.

“WAEC is an achievement exam that tests knowledge. JAMB is a ranking exam designed to sort candidates,” he explained.

However, he argued that focusing on a particular score misinterprets JAMB’s purpose.

“Fixating on 200 as a cutoff is misleading, because JAMB does not determine pass or fail—it ranks candidates against each other. The real issue is that universities do not have enough spaces, which is why students must be ranked,” he explained.

The origins of JAMB and its expected role

To put this into context, Fawehinmi discusses JAMB’s history, noting that it was not originally intended to be an examination body but rather was established in 1978 in response to recommendations from the Committee of Vice-Chancellors, which sought a centralized admission system to streamline university placements.

“JAMB’s principal function is not to administer examinations. Its mandate includes five functions, of which examinations are merely one. Yet, today, we focus solely on the exam, resulting in recurring issues.”

“If you notice, the word ‘exam’ does not exist in the name of JAMB… because that is not its primary purpose,” the official stated.

JAMB as a ‘clearing house’

He also compared JAMB to a clearinghouse, which is designed to make university placements more efficient.

“For many years, JAMB has struggled to enroll students in universities. It works like a stock exchange, matching applicants to vacant positions. But the system isn’t working properly,” he noted.

In a similar spirit, Prof. Kolawole Kola-Kazeem, former provost of the College of Education in Ilesha, has stated that JAMB needs ongoing support, urging stakeholders to join forces to increase openness and efficiency.

He stated, “We must support the registrar to make all of the amendments that are necessary.”

He also clarified a frequent misperception about the validity of JAMB results, stating that by law, they should be valid for three years rather than one.

By law, JAMB results are valid for three years. “Anything less is an aberration,” he declared.

This raises broader issues about whether Nigeria’s university admissions system should be reformed to accord with international best practices and improve efficiency.