· Best result in past 13yrs
· Educare boss hails outcome
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, has recorded remarkable improvement in performance, following the release of the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, re-sit results.
The results of the rescheduled exam were announced in a statement by JAMB’s Public Communication Advisor, Dr Fabian Benjamin, on Sunday.
Although 99 per cent of the 336,845 candidates, who sat for the UTME in Lagos and the five South Eastern states scored below 200 out of a maximum score of 400, other indices proved remarkably improved.
A detailed analysis of the UTME data between 2021 and 2025 showed that 2025 recorded the highest number of candidates with 1,931,467 while 2021 recorded the lowest candidates with 1,312,390.
On performance of candidates, 2025 saw the highest ever recorded number of candidates scoring 300 and above with 17,025 candidates, representing 0.88 per cent.
This is double the 2024 figure of 8,401, and more than 20 times the number in 2021 which was 724.
JAMB also stated that candidates scoring 250 and above, which typically qualifies them for highly competitive courses rose from 1.63 per cent in 2021 to 6.08 per cent in 2025.
The 2025 figure was 117,373 candidates, representing the highest on record, nearly six times more than in 2021.
On candidates scoring 200 and above, JAMB said after a sharp dip to 13 per cent in 2021, the percentage increased steadily to 29.3 per cent in 2025.
On candidates scoring below 200, which represents a key indicator of general performance challenges, the Board said the peak was in 2021 and 2013, with 87 per cent and 89 per cent scoring below 200 respectively.
However, 2025 saw the lowest proportion with 70.7 per cent in recent years, indicating a notable improvement.
This shows that JAMB’s performance has steadily improved since 2021, especially in the upper score bands with 2025 standing out as a year of significant positive shift, recording the highest numbers ever recorded in the 250 plus and 300 plus brackets.
Speaking on the re-sit exercise conducted for candidates affected by technical disruptions during the initial UTME, the exam body said it not only corrected prior irregularities but also unveiled far-reaching malpractice networks involving candidates, tutorial centres, and even owners of Computer-Based Test, CBT, centres.
The Board attributed this performance boost to strengthened psychometric analysis, improved examination integrity, and better monitoring.
JAMB noted that following a high-level meeting with Chief External Examiners, CEEs, across all states, it constituted a sub-committee led by Prof. Olufemi Peters, Vice-Chancellor of the National Open University of Nigeria, NOUN, to validate the results.
The Board also brought in a renowned psychometrics expert, Prof. Boniface Nworgu, who endorsed the outcomes.
However, JAMB said the improved results did not come without lessons.
According to the Board, investigations exposed alarming trends in digital fraud, including AI-enabled impersonation, network hacking of CBT centres, and coordinated registration manipulations.
It noted that more than 3,000 candidates were found culpable and are under review, with their results subject to withdrawal pending security confirmation.
Meanwhile, the CEO of Educare, Alex Onyia, has commended the Board’s sincerity and transparency.
Writing on his verified X, formerly Twitter, handle, Onyia highlighted his personal intervention in his community, noting that previous failures by over 70 per cent of local candidates inspired a grassroots transformation.
“Every youngster in my village is now undergoing intensive morning and evening CBT drills. We’re paying for their JAMB fees and offering full scholarships to any who score 300 and above,” he said.
Onyia also decried a common challenge in the country which digital illiteracy as many candidates had never used a mouse or keyboard before exam day.
“How were they planning to succeed? It’s an eye-opener,” he said.
