Nigeria’s youngest chartered accountant, Osasere Okundaye, has said the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), is not excessively difficult to pass, arguing that the quality of education students receive plays a more significant role in determining their performance than lowering admission standards.
Okundaye, 16, made the remarks during an interview on ARISE Television while commenting on the ongoing national conversation surrounding JAMB examination results, university admission cut-off marks and the state of education in Nigeria.
“I feel that JAMB is not too difficult to pass,” she said, explaining that she had written the UTME twice. According to her, she initially sat for the examination after completing secondary school to gain experience because she was not yet planning to seek university admission. She later retook the examination the following year.
While acknowledging that some candidates face challenges in the examination, Okundaye stressed that students’ performance is largely influenced by the quality of education available to them.
She argued that rather than reducing admission cut-off marks, stakeholders should prioritise improving the standard of teaching and learning across schools to better prepare candidates for tertiary education.
Okundaye recently made history after qualifying as Nigeria’s youngest chartered accountant at the age of 16 through the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), surpassing the previous national record. Her achievement was publicly celebrated by the Minister of Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, who described it as a testament to hard work, discipline and resilience.
Her comments come amid renewed public debate over UTME outcomes and university admission policies, with education stakeholders expressing differing views on whether poor student performance should prompt lower admission benchmarks or greater investment in improving educational standards.
Okundaye maintained that equipping students with quality instruction, adequate learning resources and the right academic support would produce better examination outcomes and prepare young Nigerians for future academic and professional success.
