By Agbonavbare Victor Omoregbe
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) says it is refining its policies and using technology to improve transparency, build public trust and reduce candidates’ anxiety during admission processes.
The Registrar, Professor. Segun Aina, said this during an interaction with journalists in Abuja on Wednesday, noting that the measures were aimed at improving existing processes rather than introducing fundamental changes.
Aina said the initiatives aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s directive to reduce emotional stress for children and strengthen public confidence in the admission system. FollowPolitics
He said candidates could now track their admission status in greater detail, rather than seeing only the “not admitted” notification while awaiting decisions.
Aina said the board had also introduced measures to enable candidates to update their email addresses and telephone numbers when they lost access to them.
He said the changes were made possible by technology, with safeguards retained to protect the board’s systems and candidates’ records.
The registrar said JAMB had partnered with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to address discrepancies in candidates’ names and other personal details.
He explained that the arrangement allowed candidates to align their records with NIMC data, while enabling JAMB to obtain verified information and detect possible identity manipulation.
On whether the initiatives amounted to rebranding JAMB, Aina said they were intended to consolidate existing reforms, acknowledging the contributions of previous leadership, especially the immediate past registrar, Professor. Ishaq Oloyede.
He said the previous administration had strengthened the board’s operations through reforms and technology adoption.
He, however, said it would benefit the education system by ensuring that results were released within the timeframe required for admission processes.
On the proposed introduction of critical thinking and life skills assessments, the registrar said JAMB had inaugurated a committee to examine how the competencies could be incorporated into its examinations.
He said the board currently assessed candidates mainly in subjects covered by their Senior Secondary School Certificate examinations but was exploring additional ways to evaluate their abilities.
According to him, the proposed assessment would help determine whether competencies beyond conventional academic subjects could provide a broader basis for assessing candidates’ readiness for university education.
Aina cited medicine as an example, saying that critical thinking and sound decision-making were important alongside technical knowledge in subjects such as biology and chemistry.
He said JAMB was discussing with some universities the possibility of conducting a long-term study to compare candidates’ critical thinking and life skills assessments with their subsequent academic performance.