The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) will hold a crucial review of the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) results this Thursday, following concerns raised by candidates about discrepancies and technical issues during the exam.
According to an official notice seen by The PUNCH, the review meeting will bring together vice-chancellors, rectors, provosts, school principals, examiners, and experts from various educational bodies.
The meeting will focus on addressing widespread dissatisfaction with the results that were released last Friday. Many candidates and their parents have voiced frustration, pointing to potential glitches and inconsistencies that may have affected their performances.
The review will involve officials from various educational and professional organizations, such as the All Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools, the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, and the Educational Assessment and Research Network.
The review panel will examine the UTME process to determine if there were any issues and propose necessary improvements. The panel has been tasked with offering recommendations to prevent similar challenges in future exams. The meeting is expected to be cost-free for JAMB.
More than 1.9 million candidates sat for the exam this year, and the results have sparked mixed reactions. Over 1.5 million of these candidates scored below 200 marks out of the maximum 400, raising alarm bells across the education sector.
Only a small percentage, approximately 0.63%, scored 300 or higher, which is considered top-tier performance. In total, 73,441 candidates scored between 250 and 299, while 983,187 candidates (50.29%) scored between 160 and 199. This has led to concerns regarding the high failure rate of the exam.
Some candidates have indicated plans to take legal action, claiming that their results did not reflect their true abilities. In response to the protests, JAMB spokesman Dr. Fabian Benjamin noted that the board is investigating the complaints, particularly those from a few states. He confirmed that the board is working to identify and address any technical problems that may have affected the exam process.
Dr. Benjamin also assured that the usual post-examination review, which includes an evaluation of the registration, examination, and result release stages, would be accelerated this year due to the heightened concerns.
JAMB Registrar Prof. Ishaq Oloyede defended the results, noting that the performance patterns align with those seen in previous years. “This is not peculiar to this year. The performance statistics are consistent with those of the last 12 years,” he said.
Similarly, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, defended the results, emphasizing that the high failure rate reflected the effectiveness of the government’s efforts to curb examination malpractice.
