JAMB: Why candidates affected by 2025 UTME error must immediately retake exam

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) says many factors necessitated its decision that candidates affected by its 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) technical error must quickly retake the exam.

The results from JAMB’s 2025 UTME were released on May 9, and analysis indicated that more than 78 per cent of candidates scored less than 200 points out of the 400 maximum obtainable points.

This subpar performance sparked nationwide criticism that forced JAMB to initiate an earlier-than-planned review of the exam process.

Ishaq Oloyede, its registrar, would admit that a technical error in 157 centres compromised the UTME results of 379,997 candidates.

JAMB subsequently stated that it will conduct a resit UTME for all affected candidates between May 16 and May 19.

During an X forum on Thursday evening, Fabian Benjamin, JAMB spokesperson, addressed concerns about the short notice for the resit.

He noted that the board understands the argument that candidates need more time to settle and prepare.

Benjamin explained that other examination bodies have their tests scheduled for June and July 2025.

He said if the resit UTME is delayed further, it will no longer be possible to conduct it until August 2025.

This, he said, will cost many of the students the opportunity to apply for admission into the tertiary institutions of their choice.

Benjamin said JAMB has WAEC to thank for making time out of its schedule for the board to retake the examination.

“The issue of candidates shifting the exam by one or two weeks, we wish we could, if we had the opportunity. The only option we have if we don’t do it this week is to do it in August,” the spokesperson said.

“Because at the beginning of the year, we met NECO, WAEC, NBTD, four of us, met. Each exam body took a slot, and JAMB took the first slot.

“It will be difficult for us to begin to encroach on any of those agencies. The registrar had to thank WAEC repeatedly for agreeing to adjust for us to take these few days.

“I understand that these candidates need time to settle down, but unfortunately, we didn’t plan for this. We are saddened by it and we regret it, we apologise. But this is an extraordinary situation. It’s just like an accident.

“If we miss our policy meeting in June or July, it will also affect the calendar. There are some among these candidates who applied to go to the NDA, and the NDA exam is coming up in the next two weeks.

“So, if they don’t take this exam, what it means is that they will also miss the NDA exams. So, these are all the factors that we also looked at. If we shift this exam, we may end up causing more challenges that may be worse than what we’re trying to avoid.”

Earlier in April, stakeholders had criticised JAMB’s 2025 UTME scheduling that required candidates to be at their assigned exam centres as early as 6 am.

Fabian Benjamin also explained that the exercise commences at 8 am, but candidates are asked to arrive by 6 am to allow enough time for biometric verification and security checks.

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He said the arrangement also prevents candidates from arriving late.

Benjamin assured that the board is taking the feedback seriously and will review the timing protocol for future UTME exercises.

“One thing we do in JAMB is that we’re a listening organisation. If you look at the nature of our inclusiveness, I don’t think there is any agency that is as inclusive as we are by way of composition of and bringing stakeholders in whatever we do,” he said.

“There is no decision we take in JAMB that we do not subject to public scrutiny. We invite people to scrutinise and look at the diverse ways and the consequences of that decision.

“This issue, we’ve looked at it after the exam. We used the same 6:30 last year. I’m not sure there was any uproar. But this year, we had a lot of resistance. I want to assure you that we will look into that, and something will be done with the next exercise.”