JAMB 2025: When the System Fails
From I Am Change by I Am Change
June 10, 2025 · 40 min · Season 4 · Episode 4
About this episode
This episode discusses the chaos surrounding the 2025 UTME in Nigeria, highlighting systemic failures and their impact on students.
In this episode of I Am Change, we discuss the chaos surrounding the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) in Nigeria. This national crisis left nearly 380,000 students stranded due to severe technical issues. From blank screens to sudden power cuts, thousands of candidates, especially in Lagos and the South-East, were left in academic limbo, their futures hanging in uncertainty. Joining the conversation is award-winning education journalist Deborah Tolu-Kolawole , whose investigative reporting sheds light on the systemic breakdowns behind the exam failures and the ripple effects on students and their families. Together, we explore how inadequate infrastructure, poor planning, and lack of accountability have led to widespread distrust in Nigeria’s educational systems. We also address the heartbreaking story of a 19-year-old student who died by suicide amidst the chaos, an event that has forced the nation to confront the unbearable pressure placed on young Nigerians chasing higher education dreams. In this episode, we ask: What caused the mass technical failures during UTME 2025? Is JAMB doing enough to fix the mess—and prevent it from happening again? How are…
People in this episode
Guest: Deborah Tolu-Kolawole
Topics covered
- Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination
- education crisis
- Nigeria
- student mental health
- systemic failures
Keywords
- technical issues
- academic limbo
- infrastructure
- poor planning
- accountability
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: I Am Change, I Am Change Podcast
Places: Nigeria, Lagos, the South-East
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