Amid the controversy surrounding the score of Mmesoma Ejikame, a candidate that claimed to have got the highest score in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), the one recognised to be the best, Kamsiyochukwu Nkechinyere Umeh, has narrated her experience sitting for the exam.
The organising body – Joint Admission and Matriculation Board – has faulted Mmesoma, saying she inflated her score, while noting Kamsiyochukwu is the real heroine as she got 360.
In an interview with ‘Daily Trust’, the anointed highest flyer, Kamsiyochukwu, said:
“When I went home, I focused on revising the past questions, using the series I had. My parents also encouraged me.
“When I became an SS3 student and I was fully intimated about the UTME, I was a bit scared because I felt I wasn’t ready to write (sit) it. My first contact with the exam was with the past questions the school provided to us. I became more afraid than I was initially because the questions looked so difficult and I kept asking how I was going to pass.
“I continued reading, our teachers drilled us and, most importantly, we prayed. We prayed all the time, and fasted too sometimes. Our teachers also gave us lots of tests, we had times for JAMB classes and Mock exams too.
“The night before the exam, I felt nervous. I told myself that the exam was already here and I was going to face it the next day. That night, our senior school principal prayed with us and I felt a sense of calm come over me. I told myself that it was God telling me not to worry about the exam.
“When I got into the exam hall and saw the questions, I was so happy. Throughout the exam I was just thanking God, because the questions were a lot easier than I imagined. All of us were happy because we were sure we conquered the exam.”
Kamsiyochukwu wants to study Chemical Engineering at the University of Lagos.
