Exam fever: 2025 UTME kicks off with 2 million students nationwide

No fewer than 2,030,627 candidates will begin the 2025 unified tertiary matriculation examination today, thursday April 24,2025 across Nigeria.

The joint admissions and matriculation board, JAMB, confirmed this through official registration figures released this week.

The examination will hold simultaneously across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

According to JAMB, registration for the UTME started on February 3, 2025, and ended on March 8, 2025.

The board gave candidates a one-month window to complete their registration for the national examination.

JAMB added that over 200,000 students earlier sat for the 2025 mock UTME as part of preparation efforts.

From that number, about 180 students now face sanctions for engaging in examination malpractice.

During the mock exam monitoring, JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, stressed the need for honesty and hard work.

He urged students to embrace reading and stop relying on shortcuts or leaked questions.

“The only sure way to pass UTME is to study,” Prof. Oloyede said during a media briefing.

He noted the existence of several rogue websites claiming to have access to leaked UTME questions.

“These websites are fake. We created one ourselves to catch those attempting to cheat,” he revealed.

Oloyede said about 180 candidates had already fallen into the trap of the fake rogue website.

“They paid money, thinking they would get leaked questions. It’s a serious offense,” the registrar stated firmly.

He warned that any student caught in the act will face stiff penalties from the examination body.

“Their UTME and Direct Entry results will be cancelled,” he added.

He also cautioned candidates against registering by proxy or revealing their registration details to anyone.

According to him, some schools manipulate students’ data to boost their overall ranking and performance.

“UTME is an individual examination. Schools should not hijack the process,” Oloyede explained.

He revealed that in some states, governors celebrated inflated results that were never genuine.

The registrar stressed that JAMB remains committed to preserving the integrity of its examination process.

He called on candidates to avoid all fraudulent actors promising easy success through illegal means.

Oloyede concluded by reaffirming JAMB’s zero-tolerance policy towards exam malpractice and fake result syndicates.

As the exams kick off nationwide today, authorities promise close monitoring to ensure a fair process.

Candidates have been advised to arrive at their centres early and follow all laid-down instructions strictly.

The 2025 UTME is expected to last several days, covering all approved CBT centres across the country.

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