The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has released the official record of the highest-performing candidates in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination from 2013 to 2026, showing a remarkable rise in top scores from 299 in the inaugural computer-based test era to an all-time high of 374 in 2025.
The figures, published by JAMB and obtained by EduCeleb.com from official records, highlight the steady evolution of candidate performance since the examination body fully adopted computer-based testing in 2013.
The latest ranking shows Owoeye Daniella Jesudunsin from Ekiti State emerging as the highest scorer in the 2026 UTME with 372 out of 400, narrowly missing the all-time record of 374 set in 2025 by Okeke Chinedu Christian from Anambra State.
JAMB had described Okeke’s 2025 performance as the highest score recorded since the introduction of computer-based testing, noting during its official policy briefing that it represented “the best highest in the last one and half decades.”
For 2026, Daniella, who selected the University of Lagos to study Medicine and Surgery, led a highly competitive field that included Enwere Kingsley Ikenna, who scored 370, and Bamisile Ayomide Emmanuel, who posted 369.
The board’s historical records show that 2024 produced a rare three-way tie, with Olowu Joseph Oluwasijibomi (Ondo), Alayande David (Oyo), and Orukpe Joel Ehijele (Edo) each scoring 367.
In 2023, Umeh Kamsiyochukwu Nkechinyere, a student of Deeper Life High School, Mowe, Ogun State, scored 360 to emerge top nationwide. Her achievement earned her a full scholarship from Anambra State Governor Chukwuma Soludo.
The 2022 top scorer, Adebayo Eyimofe Oluwatofunmi from Ekiti State, scored 362, while Monwuba Chibuzo Chibuikem led 2021 with 358 before proceeding to study Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering at the University of South Florida, United States.
In 2020, Maduafokwa Egoagwuagwu Agnes from Anambra State scored 365, setting what was then the highest score in the CBT era before it was surpassed in 2025.
Agnes later secured admission to Duke University in the United States, where she studied Mechanical Engineering under the institution’s prestigious Karsh International Scholarship.
The 2019 top scorer, Ezeunala Ekene Franklin, posted 347 at age 15, becoming one of the youngest candidates to attain the distinction.
In 2018, Galadima Israel Zakari from Borno State recorded 364, while Akingbulugbe Precious Ayomide topped 2017 with 353.
The 2016 examination ended in a tie between Akenbor Adesuwa Osarugue and Anonye Victory Emenike, who both scored 359. Both later studied Medicine and Surgery at Nigerian universities.
In 2015, Ilukwe Lottachukwu Geraldine, a student of Loyola Jesuit College, Abuja, scored 332 before proceeding to the London School of Economics and Political Science, where she studied Law and later became a practising lawyer in the United Kingdom.
The earliest CBT-era leaders were Onomejoh Princewill, who topped 2014 with 299, and Olise Israel Chukwunalu, who recorded the same score in 2013, the first year of JAMB’s computer-based examination.
Olise later studied Medicine and Surgery at the University of Ibadan and has since qualified as a medical doctor.
The data reveals not only a gradual rise in elite performance over the years but also the strong academic trajectories of many top scorers, several of whom have gone on to prestigious universities in Nigeria and abroad.
Education stakeholders say the trend reflects improved digital adaptation among candidates, enhanced preparatory systems, and increasing competitiveness in Nigeria’s tertiary admission process.
With nearly two million candidates sitting the examination annually, emerging as the nation’s top UTME scorer remains one of the most competitive academic achievements in Nigeria’s education system.
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