Committee Tightens UTBK Oversight Following Cheating Discoveries
The National Student Admission Selection Committee is tightening oversight standards for the Computer-Based Written Exam for National Selection Based on Tests (UTBK-SNBT) 2026. The General Chair of the 2026 SNPMB Responsible Team, Eduart Wolok, stated that the enhanced supervision is being implemented at testing centres where anomalous participant data has been detected.
Based on data from the first day of the UTBK, he reported 2,940 anomalous data points scattered across various testing locations. According to him, thousands of UTBK participants with anomalous data were identified as engaging in cheating methods.
“We have implemented even stricter oversight, beyond our standard procedures, at the UTBK centres with those anomalous data,” Wolok said at the UTBK Centre at Jakarta State University in East Jakarta on Tuesday, 21 April 2026.
Furthermore, he assured that participants caught cheating in this year’s UTBK will be disqualified. Several universities have also stated they will not accept participants proven to have cheated, even if applying through independent pathways.
During the first day of the UTBK, the committee discovered various cheating methods employed by participants, ranging from hiring proxies to smuggling hearing aids placed in participants’ ears.
One example involved the use of a hearing aid found on a UTBK participant at the Diponegoro University testing location. Wolok explained that the hearing aid was inserted into the participant’s ear canal. “By the committee (the participant) had to be taken to an ENT doctor to have the device removed,” he said.
Wolok urged participants who have not yet taken the UTBK not to engage in cheating, whether by hiring proxies or bringing aids. “It’s a pity for students who want to strive, weave hopes, and achieve a better future. We urge them to do it honourably,” he said.
The UTBK-SNBT 2026 is being conducted simultaneously from today, 21 April 2026, until 30 April 2026. UNJ is one of the locations for the higher education entrance test.
UNJ has implemented multi-layered checks to anticipate cheating during this year’s UTBK-SNBT.
Tempo observations showed that completeness checks for the test were conducted from when participants received instructions from the committee around the location. Participants were re-checked by officers before entering the testing room.
Participants were asked not to bring bags or other equipment except for the three required items: participant ID card, identity card, and class 12 certificate or diploma. At another location, the UI UTBK Centre enforced checks using metal detectors.
In terms of content, the UTBK-SNBT 2026 has not undergone significant changes. The exam still covers Scholastic Potential Test (TPS), Mathematical Reasoning, Indonesian Language Literacy, and English Language Literacy.
One significant change this year is the mechanism for determining exam locations. Previously, participants could choose locations, but now placements are directly assigned by the system. This policy aims to distribute participants more evenly, optimise UTBK centre capacities, and reduce cheating potential.