The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, convened a comprehensive review session at its national headquarters in Abuja, focused on assessing the conduct, outcome, and emerging issues from the just-concluded 2025 UTME resit. The meeting, which began at exactly 10:00 AM, was chaired by the Registrar of JAMB and attended by Chief External Examiners (CEEs) from across all states, Senator Shehu Sani, representatives from Educare, and other independent observers.
In his opening remarks, the Registrar, Prof. Oloyede clearly outlined the agenda, saying: “We are gathered here to brief, update, and review the resit examination, and to discuss arising matters that demand clarity and action.” He reemphasized that “the UTME is fundamentally a placement examination, not a certification process.”
Regarding attendance, JAMB reported that the resit recorded a 95% turnout. The Registrar added, “All absentees from the resit will be rescheduled to sit again. We are committed to ensuring every eligible candidate gets a fair opportunity.”
A major point of deliberation was the matter of underage candidates. The Registrar revealed that the number of underage candidates initially recorded as 456 had increased to 597. “We classify underage as any candidate who will not be 16 years of age by October this year,” he explained. After a round of discussions, the committee reached a consensus that “for this sitting only, the results of all underage candidates should be released,” with the understanding that universities must continue to enforce the 16-year age minimum for admission.
One of the standout contributions came from Hon. Osita Chidoka, former Minister of Aviation, who advised JAMB to invite third-party ICT experts periodically to assess its infrastructure. “Your internal tech teams are doing great, but external periodic auditing is essential to ensure long-term system integrity,” Chidoka recommended.
The meeting also examined reports of examination malpractice from different centres. Suggested remedies included the cancellation of confirmed fraudulent results, post-exam counselling for affected candidates, and introducing stronger deterrents in future exercises. CEEs from Lagos, Anambra, and three other states, along with Educare, were nominated to join a results review committee to validate data and monitor compliance.
The technical session involved a deep dive into data integrity checks, anomaly detection, and the validation of result computation. A summary of the registration scheme confirmed that exam centres went through accreditation and reaccreditation processes, with automated checks that flagged ineligible candidates based on criteria such as age, biometric irregularities, or application type.
In terms of exam monitoring infrastructure, the committee praised JAMB’s efforts, including biometric tracking, ticketing support, emergency WhatsApp groups, and dedicated help lines. “We confirmed that exam schemes were downloaded and uploaded successfully across most centres,” one technical reviewer stated. “Only between 2 to 7 sessions failed per day, and all were force rescheduled immediately.”
As the result review commenced, preliminary reports showed significantly better performance in the resit compared to the earlier April 2025 UTME. “In most randomly selected states, average scores doubled,” a committee member said. The committee also conducted remarking on a sample of previously failed candidates, which showed consistency with their resit performance, dispelling concerns of foul play.
The final analysis revealed that over 66% to 72% of resit candidates scored above 200 in most states reviewed. “We found strong evidence of authentic performance improvement across the board,” reported Engr. James Nnanyelugo, who compiled the official Educare Tech Team report. The session concluded at approximately 5:15 PM, with a shared sense of progress and renewed trust in the system’s integrity.
