The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has revealed that in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), 17,025 candidates representing 0.88 per cent of the total 1,931,467 scored 300 and above.
This is the highest number reported since the debut of the computer-based test.
According to a statistics analysis obtained by Chronicle NG on Sunday, this shows a considerable improvement in performance compared with previous years since the adoption of the CBT format in 2013.
According to the report, 1,931,467 results were released in 2025, covering 100% of the applicants who took the exam.
This statistic surpasses the 1,842,364 results reported in 2024, indicating a consistent increase in UTME participation over time.
In comparison, 8,401 candidates (0.46 per cent) received similar marks in 2024, while 5,318 (0.35 per cent) did so in 2023.
Earlier figures were considerably lower, with just 724 applicants (0.06 per cent) earning 300 and above in 2021, and none in both 2014 and 2013.
In 2025, 117,373 candidates (6.08 per cent) fell into the 250-and-up category.
This is an increase from 77,070 (4.18 per cent) in 2024 and 56,736 (3.73 per cent) in 2023.
In a related vein, “565,988 candidates, accounting for 29.3 per cent, scored 200 and above, compared with 439,961 (24 per cent) in 2024 and 355,689 (23.36 per cent) in 2023,” according to the study.
Despite these gains, the majority of candidates — 1,365,479 (70.7%) — scored less than 200 in 2025.
This is a modest decline from 76% in 2024 and 76.64% in 2023.
A year-over-year comparison demonstrates considerable variations in performance. For example, in 2021, only 168,650 candidates (13%) scored 200 or above, but in 2016, 568,847 (34%) did.
The number of high scorers has gradually climbed in recent years, demonstrating a tendency of academic development and better familiarity with the CBT method.
Since the implementation of CBT in 2013, JAMB has continued to improve its examination systems, and the 2025 results appear to reflect the success of these efforts.
JAMB is expected to issue further statements on the implications of this year’s results for the tertiary admissions process.
Chronicle NG reported that JAMB released the results of the resit examination conducted for candidates affected by a technical error during the 2025 UTME.
Remember that the preliminary results for the 2025 UTME were revealed on May 9. However, on May 14, JAMB Registrar Professor Ishaq Oloyede said that the results of 379,997 applicants from 157 centres in the Lagos and South-East zones had been compromised due to a technical issue.
The registrar verified that affected candidates will need to repeat the exam.
He blamed the problem on incorrect server updates, which prevented the appropriate upload of students’ responses over the first three days of the exam.
