2025 UTME: Low Scores Reflect End Of Cheating Era — Minister
The Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, has attributed the low performance in the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) results to the improved integrity and security of the exam process.
He disclosed this while speaking on Channels Television’s breakfast programme, The Morning Brief, on Tuesday, noting that it reflects a system where cheating has been drastically reduced.
Alausa said the results from the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) should not be viewed as a national setback but rather as a realistic reflection of the level of academic preparedness among students when examinations are conducted properly.
“JAMB conducts its exams using computer-based testing. They put so much security in place that cheating has been completely eliminated,” he said.
He pointed out that similar anti-cheating structures were not yet in place for other national examinations, such as the West African Examination Council and the National Examination Council.
According to the minister, this discrepancy creates an uneven evaluation of student ability, especially when those who may have cheated in secondary school examinations confront stricter systems like JAMB’s.
“In WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, and other exam bodies, we still see malpractices due to manual processes and what we call ‘miracle centres’. That has to stop,” Alausa stated.
He disclosed that shortly after assuming office, the ministry conducted a comprehensive diagnostic review of the national examination process and established a committee to propose reforms.
He said the committee was expected to submit its findings within the next few days.
CBT-Based Transition
In a major policy shift, Alausa confirmed that the Federal Government was set to implement the CBT across all major examination bodies.
“I am happy to report to the nation that by November this year (2025), WAEC and NECO will begin to migrate their exams to CBT.
We must use technology to fight this fraud. By 2027, all national examinations—WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, and NBAIS—will be fully computer-based,” he said.
He emphasised the broader impact of exam malpractice on education, warning that it discourages diligent students and undermines merit.
“If you allow cheating, you disincentivise the hard-working students and make the good ones bad. That’s what we are committed to stopping; there will be zero-tolerance for exam malpractice in Nigeria going forward,” the minister added.
His comments came amid public debate over the credibility of results and the integrity of Nigeria’s education system, following the viral statistical breakdown of the 2025 UTME results that revealed that over 1.5 million of the 1.95 million candidates scored below 200.