For thousands of Nigerian undergraduates hoping to prove their writing ability in the 2026 NCDMB Annual National Undergraduate Essay Competition, the real test may not end when they click the submit button.
The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has announced that the top five students emerging from the national essay competition will face a final physical handwritten test at the Board’s headquarters in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.
The development means that students who make it through the essay stage will have to demonstrate their knowledge and writing ability again — this time, without the convenience of a computer or the assistance of artificial intelligence.
Mahogany 21st Century Concepts Limited, consultants to NCDMB for the competition, disclosed the arrangement in an important notice to prospective and participating students.
The organisers also announced September 26, 2026, as the deadline for registration and submission of essays.
But for students preparing their entries, there is another warning that could determine whether their work makes it to the next stage.
The organisers said essays detected to have been generated or substantially produced using Artificial Intelligence (AI) will be automatically disqualified.
Participants have also been warned against getting someone else to write their entries.
According to the organisers, students must write and submit their essays personally and independently. The use of consultants, mercenaries, essay writers or other third parties to write or substantially assist with an entry is strictly prohibited.
For the five students who eventually emerge from the essay stage, the competition will take a different turn.
They will be invited to the NCDMB Corporate Headquarters in Yenagoa for a final handwritten examination. The topic for the test will only be disclosed when the finalists arrive at the headquarters.
The arrangement is designed to test whether the ideas and writing ability demonstrated in the submitted essays genuinely belong to the students who entered the competition.
For many undergraduates, therefore, the competition is no longer simply about producing an impressive essay. It is also about being able to defend their originality and demonstrate their knowledge under examination conditions.
The organisers said the measures are intended to protect the integrity, fairness and credibility of the competition and ensure that winners emerge solely on the strength of their own knowledge, ideas, writing ability and originality.
With the deadline fast approaching, students interested in the competition have been urged to complete their registration and submit their essays before September 26.
Registration and submission are through the NCDMB website.
The notice was signed by Eyinimi Omorozi, CEO, Mahogany 21st Century Concepts Limited.
