The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has released the statistical breakdown of the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), revealing that over 75% of the candidates who sat for the exam scored below 200.
According to the data released on Monday, out of the total 1,955,069 candidates who took part in the 2025 UTME, only 420,415 scored above 200 marks. The results also showed that less than one percent of the candidates scored above 300, underscoring the generally low performance recorded in this year’s examination.
In a statement accompanying the data, JAMB disclosed that 40,247 underage candidates were granted special permission to participate in the UTME to showcase their exceptional academic abilities. However, only 467 of these candidates—representing 1.16%—attained the score threshold considered to reflect exceptional ability. These candidates will be evaluated further in three additional stages to determine their final standing.
The board also reported instances of examination malpractice and irregularities. A total of 97 candidates were found to have committed various examination infractions, while another 2,157 are currently under investigation for suspected misconduct during the UTME. In addition, 71,701 candidates were recorded as absent during the examination period.
JAMB noted that candidates who experienced biometric verification challenges are also under review, and those who are eventually cleared will be rescheduled to take the examination at designated centres.
Moreover, some results—particularly those of blind candidates and others under the JEOG (JAMB Equal Opportunity Group) category—are still being processed and will be released once the evaluation is complete.
The board has announced plans to hold a press conference later this week to officially release individual results and provide information on how candidates can access their scores.
