How many questions are in JAMB?

Last checked 23 October 2026

Skolra is not part of JAMB. For official news, see jamb.gov.ng.

180Questions: 60 in Use of English, 40 in each other subject

2 hrsFor all four subjects together

400Total marks, up to 100 for each subject

In short

The UTME has 180 questions, and you have 2 hours for all of them.
Use of English has 60 questions. Each of your other three subjects has 40.
Every question is multiple choice, with four options, A to D. There is no theory paper.
Your score is out of 400: up to 100 for each of your four subjects.

This is the 2026 format. JAMB has set up a committee on life skills and critical thinking and has not said what changes for 2027 (checked 23 October 2026).

On this page

Questions in each subject
How the Use of English paper is set
How long the exam is
How JAMB marks the UTME
What changes for 2027
Questions students ask

Questions in each subject

Use of English	60 questions. Every candidate writes it.
Each of your other three subjects	40 questions
In all	180 questions, in 2 hours

So JAMB Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Economics, Government, Literature in English and every other subject apart from Use of English has 40 questions. JAMB says every question must be attempted.

These numbers are from JAMB's manual for the 2026 UTME, and they are the same numbers JAMB gave for 2024.

Past questions for each subject: Use of English · Mathematics · Physics · Chemistry · Biology · Economics · Government · Literature in English · all subjects.

How the Use of English paper is set

JAMB's Use of English syllabus splits the 60 questions like this:

Comprehension and summary: 25	A comprehension passage (5 questions), a summary passage (5), a cloze passage (10) and the reading text, which is the JAMB novel (5)
Lexis and structure: 25	Sentence interpretation (5), antonyms (5), synonyms (5) and basic grammar (10)
Oral forms: 10	Vowels, consonants, rhymes, word stress and emphatic stress (2 each)

See the JAMB novel for the reading text, and the JAMB syllabus for the topics in every subject.

How long the exam is

You have 2 hours for all four subjects together. JAMB says the time "cannot be altered under any circumstance". That is about 40 seconds for each question, so do not stay too long on one.

You answer on a computer at a JAMB centre, and the calculator is on the screen. See how the JAMB CBT screen, keys and calculator work.

How JAMB marks the UTME

Your result shows a score for each of your four subjects, each out of 100, and a total out of 400.
JAMB does not publish how many marks each question is worth. Treat any "JAMB marking scheme" you see online with care.
A question you leave blank earns nothing, so answer every one.
The top score reported for 2026 was 372 out of 400.

For 2026 admissions, JAMB's lowest accepted score was 150 for universities and 100 for polytechnics and colleges of education. Most schools and courses ask for more. See the JAMB cut-off marks.

What changes for 2027

JAMB has not announced a new format for 2027. On 16 September 2026 it set up a committee to draft a framework for adding life skills and critical thinking to the UTME, and it has not said whether this changes the 2027 exam. What JAMB has changed is the time: the first session of 2027 starts at 8:30 a.m., and candidates arrive by 7:30 a.m. See what is known about JAMB 2027.

Questions students ask