AS from next year, admission seekers will take a common entrance examination into higher institutions.

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) plans to introduce the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

If this major policy shift is carried out, students seeking admission into the Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of Education will take only one common examination.

Under the new scheme, students will also have six schools of choice. Now, they make two choices and write various examinations, depending on whether they are seeking admission into universities, education colleges or polytechnics. Besides, there are various examinations set by the universities.

The JAMB Registrar/Chief Executive, Prof. ‘Dibu Ojerinde, broke the news yesterday in Abuja. He said the policy would eliminate discrimination among the tertiary institutions’ students – Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of Education.

He assured all that for next year (UTME), a data base of documents of students, such as finger prints, would be introduced.

Ojerinde announced that two examination towns – Omoku in Rivers State and Aforc International Secondary School, Akwu-Achi in Oji-River Local Government Area of Eungu State – had been banned. They cease to host JAMB’s examinations due to malpractices.

The blacklisted examination towns of Okenne, Nsukka and Ile-Ife remain banned.

To ensure a credible and successful examination for what may be the last Universities Matriculation Examination (UME), Ojerinde said more than 7000 Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) will be deployed in 2,338 centres nationwide on Saturday for the UME.

About 197 Independent Examination Watch Groups comprising eminent personalities, including Vice Chancellors, Polytechnics Rectors and Provost of Colleges of Education will support the security agents.

In all, 1,182,381 candidates will sit for the examination. This represents a 5.73 percent increase compared with last year’s figure of 1,054,167.

Seventy one visually impaired candidates will also sit for the examination.

Ojerinde said: "Over the years, the major problem in the conduct of the Board’s Matriculation Examination has been the activities of a few of our supervisors and invigilators that encouraged malpractice in examination and due to this fact, the board’s examiners are held responsible for any lapses during the examination and the full weight of law is equally brought to bear on any indicted official."

"Schools, supervisors, invigilators, staff of the Board or anyone found intending to cheat will be blacklisted and will be subjected to other forms of administrative disciplinary actions," Ojerinde warned.

Dr Sunday Ogunleye of the Faculty of Education, University of Lagos, thinks the introduction of the UTME is a good idea. However, he is worried that it may be retrogressive for polytechnics and colleges of education.

He last night noted, for instance, that candidates may limit their six choices of institutions to just universities.

"Most students may just restrict their choices to universities. They may not be interested in choosing polytechnics and colleges of education. So, it may result in those institutions getting insufficient applications," he said.

He also expressed doubts about some candidates being intelligent enough to meet the cut-off marks for admission since there will likely be a centralized pass mark.

"Cut-off point is also important. Since it is a unified examination, there may need to be a central pass mark and I think some candidates who would have ordinarily made it into the polytechnic may be unable to meet the cut-off," he said.

Mr Olumuyiwa Viatonu, Deputy Provost of the Michael Otedola College of Primary Educaion (MOCPED), Norforija, Epe also thinks that the new policy may work to the disadvantage of polytechnics and colleges of education. Already battling with low-enrolment, he told The Nation that colleges of education in particular will further be hard-pressed to get students.

"I think it will be of disadvantage to colleges of education because usually after the U.M.E, candidates have a choice to take MPCE to gain admission into polytechnics or colleges of education. So if you miss it once, it means you have to wait until next year," he said.

Dr Adeniyi Harrison of the Department Of African Language, Literatures and Communication Arts, Lagos State University, felt the new policy might have been initiated by JAMB to address the disparity among graduates of universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education. He however noted that the policy may not actually solve the problem due to differences in the schools’ syllabuses.

Said he: "How will it work? Let me give you an example, colleges of education have their syllabus, which is lower than that of polytechnics and universities. Graduates of colleges of education are supposed to be like young students of universities. Another factor is that this policy will kill colleges of education, because a student who scores higher in JAMB will not want to go to colleges of education, even if that was his initial plan."

The Provost, Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education, Mr Hakeem Ajose–Adeogun, showed displeasure at the manner Nigeria is always in a hurry to adopt policies as obtained in developed societies, without appreciating how those advanced societies got there.

"The basic thing is that Nigeria is more of an erratical society. We don’t give rooms for enough consultation and that is not helping matters

"What I’m saying is that it is not just something we jump into. We have to X-ray it. Our school management is much more than what we are borrowing overseas. We have to look at the pros and cons. Are we ready and prepared? Do the policy makers understand what they have just put in place? There are varying problems facing our schools that are not yet solved. We give very little time for serious consultation," he said.