By Joy Yesufu
In an emotional moment on Wednesday, the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, broke into tears as he publicly apologised for the errors recorded in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, Oloyede said, “I apologise for the trauma caused to the candidates,” his voice trembling with emotion as he addressed the press.
“What should have been a moment of joy has changed due to one or two errors,” Oloyede said.
“We set all machineries in order, regardless, there were still errors.” He added
The UTME, a core prerequisite for admission into tertiary institutions in Nigeria, tests candidates in four subjects.
The subject areas include the compulsory Use of English and three other subjects drawn from the students proposed fields of study.
Data from the examination showed that out of the 1.9 million candidates who sat the UTME marked over 400, more 1.5 million scored below 200.
This had raised serious concern with many candidates raising complaints and threatening to initiate lawsuits against JAMB.
According to the examination body, 1,955,069 sat for the examination out of which only 4,756 candidates (0.24 per cent) scored 320 and above, considered top-tier performance, while 7,658 candidates (0.39 per cent) scored between 300 and 319, bringing the total for those who scored 300 and above to 12,414 candidates (0.63 per cent).
Also, 73,441 candidates (3.76 per cent) scored between 250 and 299 while 334,560 candidates (17.11 per cent) scored between 200 and 249.
JAMB said 983,187 candidates (50.29 per cent) scored between 160 and 199, which is widely regarded as the minimum threshold for admissions in many institutions.
In the same vein, 488,197 candidates (24.97 per cent) scored between 140 and 159, 57,419 candidates (2.94 per cent) scored between 120 and 139, 3,820 candidates (0.20 per cent) scored between 100 and 119, and 2,031 candidates (0.10 per cent) scored below 100.
Over 75 per cent of all candidates (1.5 million) scored below 200, average score seeing as the examination is graded over 400.
