The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has announced that the results of the rescheduled 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) will be officially released tomorrow, Wednesday, May 21, 2025.
In a statement issued by the examination body, the result release ceremony is scheduled to take place by 10:00 a.m. at JAMB’s national headquarters located in Bwari, Abuja.
Background: Mass Re-examination After System Glitch
The rescheduled examination was necessitated following widespread human erorr not technical glitches that affected candidates during the initial UTME held in April 2025. The failure of the computer-based testing systems prompted JAMB to conduct a special re-examination for nearly 380,000 candidates across six states.
The affected states include:
Lagos (South West)
Imo, Anambra, Abia, Enugu Ebonyi (South East)
The rescheduled UTME was conducted from Friday, May 16 to Sunday, May 18, 2025.
JAMB Takes Responsibility
In a widely followed press conference held earlier in May, JAMB Registrar, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, publicly took full responsibility for the failure of the board’s systems during the original exam. The Registrar, visibly emotional and contrite, acknowledged the distress caused to candidates and their families.
“I understand that there are three powerful expressions: ‘please’, ‘thank you’, and ‘I am sorry.’ I offer all three to our affected candidates,” Oloyede said. “Please accept our deepest apologies. I take full responsibility—not just in words but in action—for this unfortunate incident.”
Details of the Error and Its Scope
Professor Oloyede revealed that the failure stemmed from technical lapses and negligence on the part of some JAMB officials and third-party service providers. As a result, 65 CBT centres in Lagos and 92 centres in the Owerri Zone, which covers all five South-East states, were identified as having been compromised during the original UTME session.
“The opposite of love is not hate; it is indifference. And by not being indifferent to what happened, the public has shown a deep concern for the future of our youth,” he stated, while thanking critics and education stakeholders for speaking out.
Audit and Institutional Reforms Underway
The Registrar noted that the public outcry surrounding the results released on May 9, 2025 triggered an immediate internal review, which was originally scheduled for June. He explained that the board’s findings confirmed the validity of many complaints about inconsistencies and failures in the exam process.
“Though we are all human and mistakes can happen, we owe it to the candidates and the public to ensure transparency and fairness. This incident has deeply damaged the credibility of JAMB, and we are taking steps to repair it,” Oloyede assured.
He further emphasized that the incident represents a “significant setback” for the examination board and reaffirmed the commitment of the board to prevent such failures in the future.
Next Steps and Expectations
With the rescheduled exams now concluded, the official results will be published and made accessible to candidates on Wednesday, May 21. JAMB is expected to provide guidelines on how candidates can check their results via the official portal and SMS service.
This development marks a turning point in what had previously been touted as one of JAMB’s smoothest UTME exercises—until the system failures struck.
Affected candidates, their families, and education stakeholders nationwide are now looking to Wednesday’s announcement with hope and anticipation.
