In a dramatic turn of events, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced a significant improvement in candidate performance following a rare nationwide resit of the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). The development comes in the wake of a technical crisis that sparked nationwide outrage and prompted urgent calls for transparency and reform.
The resit, which involved nearly 380,000 candidates—predominantly from Lagos and the South-East—was triggered by widespread glitches during the original examination sessions in April. Candidates across several centres reported multiple disruptions, including frozen computer screens, automatic logouts, delayed biometric verifications, and in some cases, incomplete submissions. The backlash was swift and fierce, with students, parents, civil society groups, and education stakeholders calling for an audit of the examination system.
JAMB initially downplayed the issues, attributing them to “minor network lags,” but the scale and consistency of complaints forced the agency to launch an investigation. It was eventually discovered that the glitches stemmed from a faulty server update deployed shortly before the commencement of the exams—an update meant to enhance security and load management. Instead, it compromised data transmission across several Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres, leaving thousands of students stranded and disadvantaged.
Following mounting pressure, including petitions to the Ministry of Education and debates in the National Assembly, JAMB was compelled to offer a resit to affected candidates. The rescheduled examination was conducted under heightened scrutiny, with improved server protocols and independent monitors dispatched to ensure fairness.
The results of the resit have now shifted the national narrative. Of the total 1.9 million candidates who participated in the 2025 UTME, a remarkable 565,988—representing 29.3%—scored 200 and above, compared to just 24% in 2024. Simultaneously, those scoring below the 200 benchmark dropped from over 1.5 million to approximately 1.37 million.
JAMB’s Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, described the incident as a "learning curve" for the agency, noting that the improvements observed in the resit demonstrate not only the resilience of Nigerian students but also their growing adaptability to the CBT model. He assured that such errors will be prevented in the future through rigorous pre-exam testing and third-party assessments of all software updates.
The resit outcome is being viewed as a redemption arc—not only for affected candidates, many of whom have now crossed the 200-mark threshold needed for admission into competitive courses—but also for JAMB, which has faced increasing pressure to uphold integrity in a digitized examination era.
As the dust settles, education analysts argue that the incident could serve as a catalyst for broader reform in Nigeria’s digital examination infrastructure, urging government agencies to prioritize reliability over hasty innovation.
With the UTME now behind them, hopeful candidates across the country await the next hurdle: university admissions. But for now, many are celebrating what feels like a long-overdue victory.