Across five admission cycles, “no fewer than 5,000 candidates who scored 300 and above in the Unified Tertiary and Matriculation Examination” failed to enter any Nigerian university, polytechnic or college of education, DAILY GAZETTE learned.
Figures obtained from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board in Abuja reveal that 8.5 million candidates sat the UTME over the period, yet “only about 2.7 million were admitted… leaving about 5.8 million stranded.”
JAMB lists “wrong O’level subject combination, low post-UTME screening score, non-acceptance of admission offer, duplication of application, absence from post-UTME screening, and mismatch of catchment” as the chief reasons, even for top scorers, behind the rejections.
Year-by-Year Breakdown
2019/20: 1,792,719 sat; 612,557 admitted; 1,180,162 left out.
2020/21: 1,949,983 sat; 551,553 admitted; 1,398,430 left out.
2021/22: 1,400,000 sat; 312,666 admitted; 1,087,333 left out.
2022/23: 1,800,000 sat; 557,625 admitted; 1,242,375 left out.
2023/24: 1,635,881 sat; 639,263 admitted.
Education advocate, Ayodamola Oluwatoyin argues, “Let JAMB extend the validity so that people won’t have to pay every year.”
Fellow educationist Omotomiwa Daniels adds, “Why not extend the validity of the UTME result from one year to maybe two or three years?”
Despite technical hitches in the 2025 UTME, Education Minister Tunji Alausa insists the Computer-Based Test platform remains sound
“What happened was… a human error by the service provider, which has now been addressed.”
He praised JAMB for a “swift and transparent” response and said affected candidates would be rescheduled.
Earlier, JAMB Registrar Prof. Ishaq Oloyede apologised publicly, tracing the glitch to shuffled questions not loading at some centres.
At several Lagos resit centres on Friday, attendance lagged.
Datforte International School recorded 212 candidates in the first session and 222 in the second, out of 250 expected.
New Ocean Comprehensive High School saw 230 in its opening session.
Centre directors blamed “short notification” for the slump.
School proprietor Ayodele Ezekiel said, “Some of the students were not informed early enough. Some… didn’t even know they had an exam this morning.”
A CBT manager in Iyana Ipaja added that many arrived without printed slips: “We had to use our discretion… because we are parents too.”
Candidate Segun missed his slot after an overnight bus trip from Abuja: “I haven’t even taken my bath; I was rushing… It’s a sad one.”
Parent Patricia Ejeke said combining WAEC and a sudden resit was taxing: “I just pray that God would help him to do better.”
Multiple parents voiced fears of “poor performance” due to fatigue and travel expenses, with some paying local residents ₦300–₦500 just to rent chairs under makeshift canopies.
In Anambra and Imo, our correspondent observed hitch-free resits amid heavy security. At St Patrick’s College ICT Centre in Awka, biometric checks were strict; candidates who failed verification were told to “reprint their exam slips” for a later date.
Parent Uchenna Akachukwu praised officials’ “professionalism and discipline,” urging JAMB to prevent any repeat of earlier lapses.
