Entrance exams to Cameroon’s professional schools: how to get your application right
Read the official notice, gather the documents, pay fees in the right place, apply on time: a step-by-step method so you are not eliminated before the exam even starts.
Published on
- Study level
- Higher education
Every year, thousands of candidates are turned away from the entrance exams of Cameroon’s professional schools (higher teacher training colleges, polytechnics, medical faculties, IRIC, ASTI and more), not because of their level, but because their file was incomplete or late. Here is how to avoid that.
1. Read the whole official notice, and keep it
The official notice (an order or press release from the ministry or the university) sets out everything: programmes, number of places, age and qualification requirements, required documents, fees, where to apply, the deadline and the exam dates. Download it (on Minajobs Education it is attached as a PDF when available) and read it to the end, including the articles on civil servants and foreign candidates.
2. Check the requirements first
- Age: it is calculated on a precise date, often 1 January of the exam year.
- Qualification: the GCE A Level subjects or baccalauréat series required, a bachelor’s degree for master’s programmes, and so on.
- Nationality and medical fitness, required by most schools.
If you do not meet one of the conditions, do not pay the fees: your file will be rejected.
3. Gather your documents early
The documents most often requested are:
- an application form (collected at the school or completed online);
- a certified copy of your birth certificate, often less than three months old;
- certified copies of your certificates or transcripts;
- a medical certificate issued by a government doctor;
- passport-size photos;
- the receipt for the exam fees;
- stamped envelopes, for some schools.
Certifying copies and getting a medical certificate can take several days: do not leave them for the last week.
4. Pay the fees in the right place
Fees are paid only at the bank, office or online platform named in the notice. Nobody is entitled to ask you for extra money to “guarantee” your admission: that is a scam.
5. Apply before the deadline and keep the receipt
Submit a few days before the closing date: queues grow longer at the end. Keep the submission receipt with your national ID card: both are checked at the entrance to the exam hall.
6. Prepare for the papers
Get hold of past papers (see Past papers), practise under timed conditions and find your exam centre the day before.
To never miss an opening, follow the Competitive exams section and turn on Minajobs Education alerts.
Never send money to a stranger for an exam or a scholarship: official fees are paid at the bank or office named in the official notice.