In a landmark announcement that affects the educational journey of millions of Nigerian students, the Head of the Nigeria National Office of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), Dr. Amos Josiah Dangut, today officially released the results of the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) for school candidates.
Speaking at the WAEC National Office in Yaba, Lagos, Dr. Dangut expressed immense gratitude to God and all stakeholders who contributed to the successful conduct of the examination, despite a range of logistical, technological and systemic challenges.
This year’s exam offered candidates the choice of either a computer-based or traditional paper-and-pencil format, positioning WAEC among the world’s leading examining bodies to implement digital testing at such scale. According to Dr. Dangut, this technological leap would not have been possible without the support of federal and state ministries of education, security agencies and other educational stakeholders.
WAEC is now preparing to roll out a fully computer-based WASSCE for School Candidates starting in 2026.
The total number of registered candidates was 1,973,365 from 23,554 recognized secondary schools. Out of this number, a total of 1,969,313 candidates sat for the examinations.
This number consisted of 49.60% male (976,787), 50.40% female (992,526). Special Needs Candidates who sat for the examination totalled 12,178 including visually and hearing-impaired individuals, who were all accommodated appropriately.
Of those who sat for the exam 1,718,090 candidates (87.24%) obtained credit and above in a minimum of five subjects, with or without English and Mathematics.
Only 754,545 candidates (38.32%) obtained credit and above in five subjects including English Language and Mathematics, a significant drop from 72.12% in 2024 reflecting a 33.8% decline.
Female candidates slightly outperformed their male counterparts in the crucial five-subject benchmark, with 53.99% of the successful candidates being female.
Dr. Dangut attributed the lower performance partly to anti-malpractice measures, including the introduction of serialized objective test papers, which made copying more difficult and forced greater reliance on personal preparation.
WAEC withheld the results of 192,089 candidates (9.75%) due to reported cases of examination malpractice, an improvement over the 11.92% recorded in 2024. WAEC is currently investigating these cases and will release outcomes via the appropriate committees. Affected candidates may seek redress through WAEC’s official complaints portal.
A major concern remains the use of mobile phones in exam halls and collusion enabled by rogue website operators, some of whom were apprehended during the examination period.
WAEC faced multiple hurdles due to late registration and CASS uploads by some schools disrupted planning. Also,
inflation severely impacted logistics and operational costs.
Delay in exam schedule for some major papers in a few locations raised fears of uneven administration across member countries, but the situation was successfully managed.
To support students and curb malpractice, WAEC has rolled out a number of digital learning and service platforms which includes Compiled Past Questions and Answers (₦5,200 per subject combination).
WAEC e-Study portal for softcopy past questions: https://waec.estudy.ng
WAECKonnect Mobile App for real-time updates, exam tips and resources.
WAEC Digital Certificates now accessible 48 hours after results are released.
WAEC Chatbot and Request Portal for all customer service needs, available via web or WhatsApp.
Marking was carried out between July 3 and July 21, 2025, across 85 traditional venues and 4 e-marking centers, with a combined workforce of over 90,000 examiners. The Council employed real-time score capturing, a digital innovation that enhanced transparency and reduced errors in marking.
Candidates can now check their results via www.waecdirect.org using the PIN and serial number from their WAEC Smart Identity Cards. Those who have fulfilled financial obligations to the Council will be able to access their results within 12 hours of this announcement. Digital certificates will be available 48 hours post-release and hard copy certificates will be ready in approximately 90 days.
Dr. Dangut emphasized that results of candidates sponsored by indebted state governments will not be released until payments are settled.
WAEC is set to commence registration for the CB-WASSCE for Private Candidates, 2025 Second Series, ending August 22. The exam will take place later this year, with a walk-in registration option also available. Furthermore, the 2026 First Series of the private candidate examination is scheduled for January/February next year.
In closing, Dr. Dangut extended sincere appreciation to all partners, including government agencies, school authorities, security operatives, examiners and the press.
