UTME 2025 Mass Failures: JAMB Takes Major Action as Over 8000 Students Blame Technical Glitches
- JAMB has investigated claims of technical glitches affecting UTME 2025 results after candidates reported issues during the exam
- About 8,391 students have filed complaints, with calls for transparency and legal action regarding glitches that impacted their performance
- JAMB, however, engaged experts to review the exam process and assured candidates that verified issues will be addressed with fair rescheduling of exams if necessary
FCT, Abuja - The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has taken swift action to investigate alleged technical glitches that have been blamed for the mass failure recorded in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
The board has engaged IT experts and educational assessment professionals to look into the complaints raised by candidates.
Source: Twitter
2025 UTME: Candidates lament technical issues
According to JAMB’s results, 1.5 million out of the 1.9 million candidates who sat for the exam scored below 200 out of the total 400 marks.
This has led many candidates to attribute their low scores to technical issues during the exam.
In separate interviews, some students who sat the exam stated that they experienced problems during the test, such as system crashes, freezing screens, and other technical glitches that they believe impacted their performance.
“We experienced multiple system errors during our exams, which disrupted the process. This is not how the exam should be. It affected our performance, and we should not be penalised for it," one candidate said.
2025 UTME: Education advocate demands legal action
Education advocate Alex Onyia, CEO of Educare, voiced his concerns on the matter.
Onyia announced that a group of 8,391 students had filed complaints about the glitches that occurred during the exam, with many demanding to see their mark sheets for transparency.
“There is ample evidence to prove that JAMB’s system was inefficient, and this caused serious harm to the mental health of these students,” Onyia said in a statement posted on social media.
He called for a seamless way to dispute results and demanded that JAMB show students their mark sheets to clarify what they got wrong, what the correct answers were, and to provide a proper avenue for challenging the results.
JAMB assures prompt action and transparency
In response to the outcry, JAMB spokesperson, Dr Fabian Benjamin, assured the public that the board had taken the complaints seriously and had engaged a number of experts to investigate the situation, Punch reported.
“We have involved experts from the Computer Professionals Association of Nigeria, Chief External Examiners, and educational institutions, among others,” Dr Benjamin explained in a statement.
He added:
“This is part of our annual review of the UTME process, and if we find that there were indeed glitches, we will implement appropriate remedial measures.”
However, JAMB noted that the complaints were not widespread and had come from a limited number of locations across the country, Vanguard reported.
UTME: JAMB shares more updates
Source: Getty Images
JAMB also reassured candidates that anyone affected by verified technical issues during the exam would be given a fair opportunity to retake the test.
Candidates who encountered technical problems during the UTME period are typically rescheduled for a new examination date to ensure fairness and equity in the process.
“We remain committed to ensuring that every candidate is treated fairly and that any valid concerns are promptly addressed,” Dr Benjamin added.
The investigation and review process are expected to help the board identify any weaknesses in the system and implement necessary changes to prevent such issues from affecting future examinations.
JAMB: States with highest UTME malpractice cases
Previously, Legit.ng reported that JAMB disclosed that Anambra and Lagos recorded the most incidents of malpractice during the recently concluded Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
Speaking at a media briefing, JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, revealed that 80 individuals have so far been apprehended for various exam-related offences across the country. Anambra led the list with 14 suspects, closely followed by Lagos with nine.
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Proofreading by James Ojo, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
