KEY POINTS
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JAMB confirmed errors that disrupted UTME results for several candidates.
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Over 1.5 million students scored below 200 in the UTME.
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Affected candidates threaten legal action over poor exam performance.
Students’ performance on the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination suffered as a result of mistakes made by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, which acknowledged their mistakes on Wednesday.
Errors in 2025 UTME shake candidate confidence nationwide
Speaking to reporters at a continuing news briefing in Abuja, the federal capital of Nigeria, Board Registrar Prof. Ishaq Oloyede affirmed this.
During the press conference, Oloyede stated, “One or two mistakes have changed what should have been a moment of joy.”
The UTME, which tests applicants in four areas, including the required use of English, is a crucial prerequisite for admission to Nigerian higher education institutions.
In order to ensure fairness and relevance in evaluating academic preparedness for admission, the remaining three subjects correspond to each candidate’s selected field of study.
More over 1.5 million of the 1.9 million test-takers received scores below 200 out of 400.
Many stakeholders in Nigeria’s education sector expressed concern about the exam’s technical dependability and integrity in light of this dramatic drop.
Just 4,756 candidates, or 0.24 percent, received scores of 320 and higher, signifying top-tier performance, out of the 1,955,069 results that JAMB reported processing.
According to Punch, there were only 12,414 candidates with scores above 300 after an additional 7,658 candidates received scores between 300 and 319.
Errors in 2025 UTME spark legal threats from candidates
According to JAMB, 983,187 applicants, or 50.29 percent, received scores in the range of 160 to 199, which is considered a minimum need for admission.
Furthermore, according to published data, 488,197 applicants had scores between 140 and 159, while 57,419 received scores between 120 and 139.
According to the board, 2,031 candidates received scores below 100, while 3,820 candidates received scores between 100 and 119, indicating a performance distribution.
Although the exam’s final score was 400, over 75 percent of all applicants, or around 1.5 million students, received scores below 200.
Disgruntled applicants who feel they were impacted have threatened to sue JAMB for the irregularities in the exam.
