The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has publicly acknowledged that technical errors may have contributed to the unusually poor performance of candidates in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, the Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, conceded that mistakes had occurred during the examination process.
“What should have been a moment of celebration has been dampened by one or two errors,” Oloyede stated, without providing full details of the specific issues.
The UTME, a critical standardized test for admission into Nigerian tertiary institutions, evaluates candidates in four subjects—including the compulsory Use of English and three other subjects relevant to their chosen fields of study.
This year’s results sparked widespread concern after it was revealed that over 75% of the 1.9 million candidates scored below 200 out of a possible 400 marks—well below average.
According to official data:
- Only 4,756 candidates (0.24%) scored 320 and above.
- 7,658 candidates (0.39%) scored between 300 and 319.
- Combined, just 12,414 candidates (0.63%) scored 300 and above.
Further breakdown showed:
- 73,441 candidates (3.76%) scored between 250 and 299.
- 334,560 (17.11%) scored between 200 and 249.
- 983,187 (50.29%) fell between 160 and 199—considered the minimum admission benchmark for many institutions.
- 488,197 (24.97%) scored between 140 and 159.
- 57,419 (2.94%) scored between 120 and 139.
- 3,820 (0.20%) scored between 100 and 119.
- 2,031 (0.10%) scored below 100.
The disappointing results have triggered anger among candidates and parents alike, with some students reportedly threatening legal action against the examination body.
Critics have also called for a full investigation and greater transparency from JAMB, with some education stakeholders demanding that the board take responsibility for the outcome and offer remedies to affected candidates.
JAMB has yet to announce whether it will take corrective measures or offer retakes for students whose results may have been impacted by the acknowledged errors.
