Education in Nigeria
Why 5,000 Candidates with 300+ UTME Scores Missed Admission
Despite scoring over 300 in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), at least 5,000 candidates failed to secure admission into tertiary institutions across Nigeria within the last five academic sessions, an investigation by Business Hallmark has revealed.
Data obtained from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) indicates that between the 2019/2020 and 2023/2024 sessions, approximately 8.5 million candidates sat for the UTME. However, only about 2.7 million were admitted into various tertiary institutions, leaving roughly 5.8 million stranded—some of them top scorers.
JAMB attributed the high number of unadmitted candidates to various reasons, including wrong O’level subject combinations, low post-UTME screening scores, refusal to accept admission offers, duplication of applications, absenteeism during screening exercises, and mismatches in catchment area considerations.
According to official records:
In the 2019/2020 session, 1,792,719 candidates sat for the UTME, but only 612,557 gained admission.
In 2020/2021, 1,949,983 sat the exam, while only 551,553 were admitted.
For 2021/2022, out of 1.4 million candidates, just 312,666 gained admission.
In 2022/2023, 1.8 million sat the UTME, but only 557,625 were offered placements.
In 2023/2024, out of 1,635,881 candidates, 639,263 were admitted.
This recurring trend has led education experts to advocate for reforms. One key proposal is extending the validity period of UTME results beyond the current one year.
Ayodamola Oluwatoyin, Programme Director of Reform Education Nigeria, said, “JAMB should extend UTME validity, just like WAEC results, so students don’t have to pay every year.”
Another educationist, Omotomiwa Daniels, echoed similar sentiments, suggesting a validity period of two to three years to ease the burden on candidates and their families. Yinka Oladele, registrar of Grace Tutorials Centre, added, “With the current economic hardship, it’s unfair to compel students who passed but weren’t admitted to retake the exam every year.”
Meanwhile, JAMB’s Computer-Based Testing (CBT) system, used for conducting UTME, came under scrutiny during the 2025 exams following widespread complaints of technical glitches—particularly in Lagos and southeastern states.
Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, while acknowledging the disruptions, defended the credibility of the CBT system and JAMB’s integrity. Speaking in Lagos, Alausa explained that the problem stemmed from a technical fault caused by one of JAMB’s service providers, which affected the proper loading of shuffled questions.
“This was a human error, not a systemic failure. JAMB responded swiftly, launched a forensic audit, and corrective actions are now in place,” he assured.
JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, had earlier apologised publicly for the disruptions and promised that affected candidates would be rescheduled for a makeup exam.
However, the rescheduled CBT sessions held last Friday witnessed low turnouts across centres in Lagos, largely due to the short notice given to candidates.
At Datforte International School, Ahmadiyya, Abule Egba, only 212 and 222 candidates attended the first and second sessions respectively, out of 250 expected per session. New Ocean Comprehensive High School in Ayobo recorded just 230 students in the first session. Vanilla CBT Centre in Ayobo and Enefem International School also reported similar attendance issues.
Ayodele Ezekiel, proprietor of Enefem, said, “Many students didn’t even know they had an exam that morning. The short notice affected turnout.”
At a CBT centre in Ikotun, a director who requested anonymity stated that several students arrived without printed slips but were allowed in after showing notifications on their phones. “Some even arrived unkempt, having just received the message that morning,” he said.
Parents echoed similar frustrations. One candidate, Segun, said he travelled overnight from Abuja to Lagos after receiving the notification on Thursday, only to miss his scheduled session. His experience was not unique.
Mrs. Akinwolere Olusola, Central Administrator of a centre in Ayobo, noted that late registration also contributed to the inconvenience, as such students were posted to faraway centres due to limited available spaces.
At Enefem, Abimbola Patricia said her son was juggling both UTME and ongoing WAEC exams with little preparation time. “He got the resit notice on Thursday afternoon after returning from his WAEC paper,” she lamented.
Another parent, Mrs. Kuye Temidayo, who travelled from Ogun State, criticised the short notice. “The exam had started before we even found the location. The timing was just too tight,” she said.
Some parents also complained about poor facilities and being charged ₦300 to rent chairs under the sun while waiting.
Mrs. Araba Stella said, “Some students got their notices on Friday morning and were expected to write by 6:30 a.m. It’s no surprise if their performance is affected.”
While JAMB continues to uphold the credibility of its exams, stakeholders are calling for more student-friendly policies—particularly with regard to result validity and logistical planning—to reduce repeated failures and ease the burden on candidates and their families.