By Sydney Elike

Copyright thesun

Esther Bassey

It was a mix of frustration and relief for many Lagos candidates who sat for the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

From technical glitches to strict monitoring, opinions remain divided as students, parents, and experts share their experiences.

For some candidates, the experience was nothing short of exhausting. One of them, named Nsikak Victor, who spoke with Daily Sun, referred to it as “gruelling and stressful,” recounting how his centre was plagued by technical glitches.

“When we started the exam, questions 1 to 10 in English had no options. They told us to wait, but nothing was done till the end.

“So, everyone in that centre left those questions unanswered,” he said with frustration written all over his face.

Favour Michael, another candidate, had a slightly better story to tell.

“It was okay. The rewriting process was a bit stressful, but overall manageable. I didn’t encounter any major technical problems.

“Physics was tough, but the questions were fair,” she said, adding that she did not observe any malpractice at her centre.

While some parents fumed at what they saw as a sign of inefficiency, others took a more balanced view.

Mr Victor, a father who followed his son to the centre, said: “I think JAMB is trying, but they must improve their CBT facilities. These are children’s futures, and every glitch is a potential setback.”

Another parent named Michael Eyo, however, was more forgiving: “Compared to years back, things are better. At least malpractice is reducing. They just need to keep upgrading.”

On social media, particularly X (formerly Twitter), reactions were mixed. Some Lagosians praised the Computer-Based Test (CBT) system for reducing cheating, while others said the constant glitches showed that JAMB still had a long way to go in matching the scale of Nigeria’s educational demand with reliable technology.

To make sense of the issues, Oke Daniel, a tech expert, weighed in. He commended CBT as an innovative method but warned that poor infrastructure leaves the system open to stress and abuse.

“Technical glitches occur because of server overload. JAMB should invest more in load balancers, constantly patch systems, and adopt zero-trust frameworks to prevent breaches,” he explained.

He also advised that hardware such as laptops and CCTV monitoring should be properly maintained, while custom-made software from reliable vendors could help curb tech-driven cheating.

Ultimately, the 2025 UTME in Lagos revealed both the progress and the pains of Nigeria’s education system. For candidates, parents, and observers, it was a test not just of knowledge but of patience and hope.

“At the end of the day, some of us cried, some of us smiled. But we all want the same thing — fairness,” a Lagos candidate concluded.