OVER 1.5 million candidates are to sit for the 2012 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations across the country on Saturday, the national examination body said on Tuesday.

The candidates are to compete for about 500,000 admission slots in various tertiary institutions for the 2012/2013 academic season.

Registrar of JAMB, Prof. ’Dibu Ojerinde, said this at a press briefing in Abuja on Tuesday.

He said, “A total of 1,503,931 candidates registered for the 2012 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, making it the highest number of candidates so far since the existence of JAMB.”

Ojerinde said 1,375,642 registered for the examination in 2010 while 1,493,603 candidates registered for the same examination in 2011.

According to him, the figure in this year’s UTME is only a marginal increase of 10,338 candidates against an increase of 117,961, the 2011 UTME had over its maiden edition in 2010.

He said Saturday’s exam would hold simultaneously in the 375 towns in Nigeria and six foreign centres. They are Accra (Ghana), Buea (Cameroun), Cotonou (Benin Republic), London, Jeddah and Johannesburg.

According to him, the increase in the number of centres at home and abroad underscores the acceptability of the exam.

Ojerinde said about 467,000 gained admission to various institutions last, saying “it may be above 500,000 this year.”

Ojerinde said, “A total of 3,001 centres will be used for the conduct of the examination against the 2,872 centres used for the 2011 UTME.

“About 129 additional centres were created across the country.

“The implications of this development is that the board has registered more examination centres, thus providing more access to deserving Nigerian children to tertiary education.”

He also explained that the biometric fingerprint machine had been improved upon to deliver quality service, adding that it would take between 30 and 40 minutes to screen the 540 candidates in each centre.

He advised candidates, supervisors and invigilators to stick to instructions to avoid sanctions.

Ojerinde reiterated the board’s determination to conduct a better exam than what obtained in the past.