This year's Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) in Nigeria has faced significant backlash due to widespread technical failures, resulting in a shocking low pass rate. Nearly 80% of candidates scored below the threshold needed for university admission, with a tragic event prompting urgent calls for accountability.
Nigeria's University Entrance Exam Chaos: Tragedy and Technical Failures
Nigeria's University Entrance Exam Chaos: Tragedy and Technical Failures
A recent fiasco in Nigeria's university entrance exams has led to student distress and a tragic suicide, highlighting systemic failures within the education system.
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), responsible for the exams, acknowledged a "technical glitch" that affected the results of this year’s tests. Reports surfaced of students unable to log in, encountering blank questions, and facing power cuts that disrupted the testing process.
The difficulties culminated in a heartbreaking incident involving Faith Opesusi Timileyin, a 19-year-old aspirant for microbiology, who tragically took her own life after performing poorly on the exam for the second year in a row. Her family revealed that her latest score of 146 marks out of 400 was lower than her previous attempt. Her father expressed the overwhelming pain she endured from the disappointment.
Generally, a score of 200 or higher is needed for students to secure a place in university, but out of 1.9 million candidates, only about 400,000 met the necessary mark, revealing one of the worst performance rates in recent memory. Concerns grew as students like Favour Eke exposed additional problems, including blank questions in the exam, which made focusing nearly impossible. Facing continuous issues with her test results, Eke fears it will be her third failure to gain university admission, further deteriorating her mental health.
In response to the uproar, JAMB's registrar, Ishaq Oloyede, publicly apologized during a press conference, visibly emotional, stating that the organization would allow approximately 380,000 affected candidates to retake their exams starting from the upcoming Saturday. The technical issues were attributed to a flawed computer system in several regions, notably Lagos and parts of Southeast Nigeria.
Public outrage on social media has surged, with many calling for accountability from JAMB, and some demanding Oloyede's resignation. Critics, including opposition leader Peter Obi, underscored the disturbing implications of such systemic failures. Rights activist Rinu Oduala labelled the incident as “educational sabotage,” demanding urgent reforms to prevent future occurrences.
As Nigeria faces scrutiny over these systemic educational failures, the tragic outcome reflects not only the challenges within the examination system but also the urgent need for reform to safeguard students’ futures.
The difficulties culminated in a heartbreaking incident involving Faith Opesusi Timileyin, a 19-year-old aspirant for microbiology, who tragically took her own life after performing poorly on the exam for the second year in a row. Her family revealed that her latest score of 146 marks out of 400 was lower than her previous attempt. Her father expressed the overwhelming pain she endured from the disappointment.
Generally, a score of 200 or higher is needed for students to secure a place in university, but out of 1.9 million candidates, only about 400,000 met the necessary mark, revealing one of the worst performance rates in recent memory. Concerns grew as students like Favour Eke exposed additional problems, including blank questions in the exam, which made focusing nearly impossible. Facing continuous issues with her test results, Eke fears it will be her third failure to gain university admission, further deteriorating her mental health.
In response to the uproar, JAMB's registrar, Ishaq Oloyede, publicly apologized during a press conference, visibly emotional, stating that the organization would allow approximately 380,000 affected candidates to retake their exams starting from the upcoming Saturday. The technical issues were attributed to a flawed computer system in several regions, notably Lagos and parts of Southeast Nigeria.
Public outrage on social media has surged, with many calling for accountability from JAMB, and some demanding Oloyede's resignation. Critics, including opposition leader Peter Obi, underscored the disturbing implications of such systemic failures. Rights activist Rinu Oduala labelled the incident as “educational sabotage,” demanding urgent reforms to prevent future occurrences.
As Nigeria faces scrutiny over these systemic educational failures, the tragic outcome reflects not only the challenges within the examination system but also the urgent need for reform to safeguard students’ futures.
