How the JAMB CBT exam works

Use of English has 60 questions and each of your other three subjects has 40: 180 questions in 2 hours, all multiple choice with four options, A to D. There are several sessions a day. You are given one session and cannot move to another. See how many questions are in JAMB and how it is marked.

Use of English includes questions on the JAMB novel. See the JAMB novel.

You can answer with the mouse:

• Click an answer to choose it.
• Click NEXT or PREVIOUS. Your answer is saved when you move.
• Click a question number at the bottom of the screen to go straight to that question.
• Click the calculator at the top right of the screen to open it.
• Click END EXAM to finish. Once you submit, you cannot go back.

JAMB's manual does not describe how the subject buttons or the timer look, so they may look different from practice software.

The calculator. It is built into the screen: click the calculator at the top right to open it. You cannot take your own calculator into the hall. Practise with an on-screen calculator before the day, and do simple sums in your head.

The keys. JAMB's manual says you can answer with the keyboard alone, without the mouse. These are the keys it lists:

• Your exam slip. In 2026, candidates printed it from jamb.gov.ng. It shows your exam date, time and centre. Having no slip is an offence on JAMB's list.
• Arrive on time. Come at the time printed on your slip.
• Fingerprints. You are let in only after your fingerprints are checked. JAMB's words: "No biometric, no examination."
• What you can bring. JAMB's 2026 notice says: "Only pencils are allowed."
• What you cannot bring. Phones and any electronic device, wristwatches, earphones, pens, calculators, books or papers, flash drives, cameras, ATM cards, erasers, wallets or purses, rings, bangles and necklaces. Officials may check glasses.
• Hijab. In April 2026, JAMB said asking candidates to remove hijabs is "not in line with its screening procedures".

• First-session time. Arrive by 7:30 a.m. The exam runs from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Other sessions keep the usual pattern. The full 2027 timetable has not been released.
• Registering from home. JAMB plans a Pre-Registration App. You would do most of the registration at home and go to a centre only for fingerprints and your photo. It will include an eligibility checker. Its launch date and how it works are not confirmed.
• Bring your own device. In May 2026, the then Registrar, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, said JAMB would begin a "Bring Your Own Device" option from 2027. Who can use it, what device you need and the rules have not been announced. Treat it as a plan for now.
• Face checks. JAMB plans to add live face checks against NIMC records, with the fingerprint check kept for now. No start year was given.

See the proposed 2027 exam dates and everything JAMB has said so far.

The JAMB mock is an optional practice exam at a real CBT centre, a few weeks before the UTME. See how the JAMB mock exam works.

• Watch your time. 180 questions in 120 minutes is about 40 seconds a question. Do not stay too long on one question. You can come back to it from the question numbers.
• Answer every question. JAMB's manual says every question must be attempted.
• Learn the keys before the day. A, B, C, D to answer, N and P to move, S then Y to submit. You can practise these keys in Skolra for Windows or Skolra for Mac.
• Practise with an on-screen calculator. You cannot take your own calculator in.
• Sit full timed mocks. Four subjects, two hours, one sitting. The Skolra JAMB CBT practice uses this format.

See our 12-week JAMB study plan.