The recent mass failure in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), organised by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), has elicited calls for sweeping reforms.
The calls came as the board and students try to navigate the rough path out of the quagmire.
According to stakeholders who spoke with LEADERSHIP Weekend, the mass failure raises questions about the effectiveness of Nigeria’s education system.
To avert a recurrence, they appealed to the authorities to embark on urgent reforms to ensure that candidates are well prepared for tertiary education.
Securing Admission In Varsities, Others
The road to gaining admission into Nigeria’s tertiary institutions has always been difficult, but the 2025 UTME has introduced a series of new challenges.
From technical glitches during registration and computer-based testing (CBT) to limited admission slots, this year’s process has tested candidates’ resilience more than ever.
Over 1.9 million students registered for the 2025 UTME, making it the largest examination in the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board’s (JAMB) history.
This surge reflects the growing population and increasing demand for higher education among Nigerian youths. However, the sheer number of applicants has only aggravated the scramble for limited spots in the nation’s universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.
Nigeria currently has over 299 universities, 150 polytechnics, and approximately 205 accredited colleges of education. Despite these numbers, the combined annual admission capacity of these institutions hovers between 500,000 and 700,000 — less than half the number of UTME applicants.
For many students, even strong UTME scores do not guarantee a place, leading to disappointment and anxiety.
A key barrier to admission is the UTME cut-off mark — the minimum score candidates must achieve to be considered for admission.
In recent years, JAMB set the general cut-off mark at 140 for universities, and 100 for polytechnics and colleges of education. However, individual institutions often set significantly higher thresholds for competitive courses like Medicine, Law, Engineering, and Accounting.
Cut-off marks fluctuate based on overall candidate performance, institutional capacity, and course demand. High-scoring years typically lead to higher institutional cut-offs, while general poor performance may prompt slight downward adjustments. This unpredictability adds to the stress and uncertainty faced by candidates.
However, even candidates who meet the minimum UTME score may still fall short if their post-UTME performance (where applicable) or O’Level results are weak.
Universities such as UNILAG, UI, and UNIBEN are known to raise their standards, setting cut-off marks significantly higher than JAMB’s minimum, particularly for high-demand courses.
This year, public frustration reached new heights following reports of massive poor results, coupled with technical failures. Many students, parents, and education stakeholders expressed outrage over what they described as a flawed process.
In response to the outcry, JAMB Registrar, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, set up an investigative panel. After preliminary findings, the board admitted to administrative and technical lapses that may have compromised many candidates’ performance in Lagos and the South East.
As a corrective measure, JAMB started the rescheduled exam for the affected students yesterday and promised improved oversight and credibility moving forward.
NANS Advises Candidates, Urges Overhaul Of UTME
However, in separate interactions with LEADERSHIP Weekend, leaders of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) expressed concern over systemic failure and the candidates’ apparent unpreparedness.
NANS Secretary-General, Anzanku Shadrach, said part of the reasons for the mass failure was the candidates’ overuse of social media, just as he accused JAMB of poor preparations.
He said many of the candidates did not focus on their studies, stressing that NANS was investigating claims of irregularities.
“I believe some of the things that caused this mass failure are due to the involvement of Nigerian students with social media. Most Nigerian students don’t read again, and that is an issue on our part. So, I believe if we reduce the time spent on TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram and focus on our studies, things will be better.
At the level of NANS, we have received so many complaints, but for irregularities, we are yet to observe any. So, we set up a fact-finding committee and also visited the JAMB Registrar to get first-hand information.
In a nutshell, once this committee’s report indicates any irregularities, we will demand the sack of the Registrar,” he said.
Comrade Samson Ajasa Adeyemi, NANS Public Relations Officer, faulted the exam timetable and called for its review.
He said fixing candidates’ examinations for 6:30 a.m. was unacceptable given the country’s current security challenges.
He urged JAMB to embrace modern technology and extend the examination window, saying the existing system was outdated and unfair.
However, the NANS Coordinators’ Forum asserted that the candidates’ unpreparedness did not solely cause the mass failure, but also a glaring systemic failure by JAMB.
Comrade Daniel Friday Egga, Zonal Coordinator, NANS Zone C (North Central), on behalf of other coordinators, said:
“When a nationwide examination records such a staggering failure rate, it is imperative to interrogate the structure, implementation, and technological framework of the examination process, rather than laying a blanket blame on the students.
While we acknowledge that JAMB has initiated measures to offer affected students another opportunity to rewrite the examination, we ask the hard but necessary question: Who bears the brunt of the emotional and financial cost incurred by students and their parents? Who accounts for the trauma, the lost opportunities, and in the worst cases, the lives now cut short because of a system that failed them?”
While recognising the efforts of the current JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, whose tenure has witnessed laudable reforms, he said it may be time for him to make way for another chief executive of the examination body.
Should this demand be ignored, we will have no choice but to mobilise for a nationwide protest, as we cannot continue to watch our students suffer under the weight of institutional negligence,” he said.
Weeping Not Enough, Registrar Should Resign – Varsity Don
BY JAMES KWEN, Abuja
Similarly, a lecturer in the Department of Political Science, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Dr Christian Okeke, has told JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, that weeping and merely saying he takes full responsibility for the negligence of staff during one of the most traumatic examination outings for teenage applicants in history is not enough.
The don said Oloyede should take an extra step by resigning and allowing the federal government to reposition the board for effective service delivery.
LEADERSHIP Weekend reports that the JAMB Registrar shed tears during a press conference in Abuja over the mass failure.
Oloyede, who was seen weeping, admitted the disruption was caused by a service provider’s failure to apply a necessary software patch properly.
But Okeke said that was not enough, hence the Registrar should honourably resign.
How can the Registrar’s tears resurrect the dead and accentuate the depression into which candidates have been plunged? It was almost like a national mourning.
The minimum that is acceptable from the Board is to release the true results of the candidates, provide psychological support, and ensure that those responsible take true responsibility, which must start with the Registrar’s exit.
For once, Nigerians have risen to an unacceptable conduct by a government institution and must be commended,” the university teacher added.
Candidates Speak On Experiences
Meanwhile, several students affected by technical issues have come forward with their experiences, amplifying calls for reform.
Olawanle Timileyin said he knew from the onset that the result was not his when he checked it.
“Now that JAMB has admitted fault, I think rescheduling the examination for the affected candidates is not enough. The board should pay allowances to candidates for the expenses they incurred,” he said.
Another candidate, Eunice Aegh, said she was reluctant to check the result. According to her, she hesitated to check her score after the news of the massive failure broke.
“My brightest schoolmates did not get up to 200 points,” she stated.
Rescheduled Exam Kicks Off
The rescheduled 2025 UTME organised by JAMB kicked off for the affected candidates nationwide on Friday.
The candidates’ examination had to be rescheduled due to technical glitches and logistical issues they encountered during the initial phase.
LEADERSHIP Weekend gathered that candidates were seen undergoing biometric verification for the first examination session on Friday at various centres, including Nnamdi Azikiwe University in Awka, Anambra State.
It was also gathered that some candidates received messages less than 24 hours in advance notifying them of the rescheduled exam. Many had to travel long distances to meet the deadline.
Similarly, parents have expressed mixed feelings, hoping for a smooth examination experience after the earlier delays.
A parent, Mrs. Ijioma Ugwu, who resides in Abuja and whose son was rescheduled to write the examination in Enugu on Friday morning, lamented that the board still failed to address some of the issues raised earlier.
According to her, if JAMB must continue to exist, it should aspire to improve on the standards of 1978, when it was founded.
She also lamented the 6:30 a.m. scheduled time for the candidates.
Another parent, Mr. Adeyemi Fayose, whose daughter was affected, said that what parents need from JAMB is more than an apology; they need a waiver for all the affected students.
Prof. Yusuf Ali Hails Oloyede For Admitting Lapses
BY HENRY TYOHEMBA, Abuja
Meanwhile, the JAMB chief executive has been commended for his honesty and transparency in admitting the technical faults that affected the conduct of the 2025 UTME in some parts of the country.
Prof. Yusuf Ali, 1st Kuliya Ngeri of Ilorin Emirate, in a press statement, acknowledged Oloyede’s uncommon integrity and leadership in taking full responsibility and showing empathy to affected candidates.
He noted that Oloyede chose to admit the faults rather than ignore them, as many public officials might, describing him as a selfless leader who works tirelessly to ensure the integrity of the exam process.
Ali said he should not resign but rather continue leading JAMB through the crisis, emphasising his track record of excellence and patriotism.
“I dare say that the path he has chosen on this unfortunate matter—admitting that there were mistakes, owning up, and showing genuine empathy to the victims of this unfortunate event—is a rare occurrence in our part of the world.
“Oloyede has shown that those who operate in our national space are also fallible like all humans and that perfection belongs only to Almighty Allah. He has shown candour, honesty, transparency, humanness, and leadership by accepting full responsibility for the acts of others because he happens to be the head of the organisation.”
“We who know Oloyede closely can attest to the sleepless nights he usually has, at least three months before any of these examinations, physically visiting the various offices of JAMB all over Nigeria in preparation for these examinations.
“No serious leader will abandon his people at the time of a crisis, which is what his resignation at this point will translate to. This unfortunate incident happened under his watch, and it makes a lot of sense that he should not abandon ship but be manly enough to see the problem through to the end,” he added.
Youth Forum Wants Exam Cancelled
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