Parents, students and education stakeholders in Kogi, Nasarawa and Niger states have expressed divergent views on the conduct of the Post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination
By Mohammed Baba Busu
Parents, students and education stakeholders in Kogi, Nasarawa and Niger states have expressed divergent views on the conduct of the Post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (Post-UTME) as a prerequisite for admission into Nigerian universities.
While some respondents described it as a necessary screening tool to ensure merit-based admissions, others faulted the exercise as archaic, stressful and an additional burden on candidates and their parents.
In Kogi, Dr Charles Williams, the Rector of Nigeria-Korea Friendship Institute of Vocational and Advanced Technology, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lokoja that the Post-UTME remained an effective tool to complement the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
“The Post-UTME came into existence when JAMB’s credibility was being doubted. Institutions sought to further screen candidates to ensure that only the most qualified were admitted,” he said.
Similarly, Dr Simeon Omakoji, a parent and former Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) in Kogi, said the examination was necessary, provided that fraud was eliminated from the process.
Some students, including Miss Grace Ogundare of the Federal University, Lokoja, said the examination provided a fair assessment.
However, Mr Hamza Aliyu, the Chairman of Kogi NGO Network (KONGONET) described the examination as unnecessary.
“The Post-UTME examination negates the centralised system of admission embedded in the education policy,” he said.
He advocated a decentralised system where institutions determine their own admission processes.
Also, some parents and students, including Mrs Joy Adaji, Mr Biobaku Chris, Mrs Ammy Elijah and Mr Ogundare Samuel, faulted the examination, citing the cost, stress of travel, insecurity and accommodation challenges.
They also alleged that the system encouraged exploitation and corruption.
In Nasarawa, applicants such as Miss Patience Emmanuel and Mr Peter Samuel supported the screening, saying it allowed candidates to defend their JAMB and O’Level results.
Meanwhile, other stakeholders, including Mr Michael Akawu and Mr Saidu Musa, called for abolition of post-UTME, describing it as exploitative.
Musa wondered why institutions that would admit about 2,000 students subject over 10,000 candidates to Post-UTME payments.
He appealed to the management of the tertiary institutions to organise the screening free of charge in order to relive parents of the financial burden.
In Niger, Dr Abdullahi Jabi, a communications expert, urged the Federal Government to adopt online Post-UTME to reduce costs and risks.
“To me, candidates should sit for the examinations in their localities rather than travel long distances. All they need do is indicate their institution of choice,” he said.
Other respondents, including Malam Yusuf Suleiman, a teacher, and parents, Hajia Halimat Musa and Malam Nurudeen Ibrahim, also lamented the risks, high costs and duplication of the admission process.
Suleiman said, “”I remember some years ago when my son was to sit for Ahmadu Bello University’s post-UTME examinations, I had to abandon everything I was engaged in to accompany him to Zaria all in the name of post-UTME.”
Halimat Musa, recalled the difficulty she went through in 2023 during her daughter’s post-UTME at the University of Ilorin, Kwara State.
“The financial burden and the risk of taking her all the way to the institution was a very harrowing experience to subject Nigerians,” she said.
Malam Ibrahim said, “I have no doubt that if the screenings are conducted online, regardless of where the candidates may be residing, or the higher institutions of their choices, it will go a long way to address the challenges.”
He also decried shortage of Computer-Based Test Centres (CBT), which are mostly privately owned, thereby, compelling candidates to travel long distances for such services.
They urged the authorities to increase investment in Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres and direct universities to adopt online screening like the Federal University of Lafia, and the Federal University, Oye-Ekiti.
They maintained that such measures would reduce hardship, make the process seamless and ensure credibility.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)