By Opeyemi Quadri 
The 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) results released by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, show that five out of the top scorers chose Mechanical Engineering as their preferred course of study.
The top three highest scorers in the exam — Okeke Chinedu Christian with the highest score (375 out of 400), Ayuba Simon-Peter John (374), and Abdulmalik Olayinka Jimoh (373) — all chose Mechanical Engineering as their number one course of choice.
While releasing the results in Abuja, JAMB Registrar Ishaq Oloyede stated that the top three scorers picked the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), and the University of Lagos (UNILAG), respectively.
He disclosed that the highest scorer, Okeke, hails from Anambra; the second-highest scorer, Ayuba, is from Gombe; while the third-highest, Abdulmalik, is from Kwara State.
Shift from Medicine to Engineering
Interestingly, all the 10 highest scorers in the 2025 UTME chose Engineering, except the sixth-highest scorer, Olawepo Tunmise Gertrude, who chose Computer Science.
In the past, top UTME scorers have typically chosen Medicine or Law as their course of study, but the shift is obvious in the 2025 UTME result, according to JAMB data.
Edubase Nigeria cannot independently verify whether the incessant strikes by medical doctors due to poor pay by the government have contributed to this shift.
Geopolitical Shift
No state in the Southwest geopolitical zone made it to the top nine, except Ogun State, represented by Oyebode Emmanuel Oluwapelumi, who scored 372. Interestingly, no candidate from Ekiti State—often referred to as the Fountain of Knowledge—made the list, a point that social media users have noted.
What also makes the JAMB data interesting is the fact that nine out of the 10 top scorers do not hail from the Southwest geopolitical zone, yet all selected universities located in the Southwest.
Gender Performance
Only one female, Olawepo Tunmise Gertrude from Kwara State, who scored 373, made the top 10. She is also the only candidate who chose a course outside Engineering — Computer Science — as her preferred field of study.
First Choice Institution
In terms of institution of choice, five out of the 10 best performers chose the University of Lagos (UNILAG) as their first choice. The candidates are: Okeke Chinedu Christian (Anambra State), Abdulmalik Olayinka Jimoh (Kwara State), Roberts Ayibo Damiete (Rivers State), Olawepo Tunmise Gertrude (Kwara State), and Oyebode Emmanuel Oluwapelumi (Ogun State).
Two of them — Ononugbo Chibueze Chigozirim from Enugu State and Omigie Cecil Osaigbovo from Edo State — chose the University of Ibadan (UI). Covenant University and Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife (OAU) have one slot each, with both candidates from Delta State.
2025 UTME 10 Best Scorers
Below is the list of the ten best candidates in the 2025 UTME, their state of origin and their institution of their choice:
1) Okeke Chinedu Christian
- Score: 375
- State of Origin: Anambra
- Institution of Choice: University of Lagos (UNILAG)
- Course of Choice: Mechanical Engineering
- Gender: Male
2) Ayuba Simon-Peter John
- Score: 374
- State of Origin: Gombe
- Institution of Choice: Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD)
- Course of Choice: Mechanical Engineering
- Gender: Male
3) Abdulmalik Olayinka Jimoh
- Score: 373
- State of Origin: Kwara
- Institution of Choice: University of Lagos (UNILAG)
- Course of Choice: Mechanical Engineering
- Gender: Male
4) Roberts Ayibo Damiete
- Score: 373
- State of Origin: Rivers
- Institution of Choice: University of Lagos (UNILAG)
- Course of Choice: Electrical/Electronic Engineering
- Gender: Male
5) Ononugbo Chibueze Chigozirim
- Score: 373
- State of Origin: Enugu
- Institution of Choice: University of Ibadan (UI)
- Course of Choice: Electrical/Electronic Engineering
- Gender: Male
6) Olawepo Tunmise Gertrude
- Score: 373
- State of Origin: Kwara
- Institution of Choice: University of Lagos (UNILAG)
- Course of Choice: Computer Science
- Gender: Female
7) Afenitan Leslie Ofeoritse
- Score: 373
- State of Origin: Delta
- Institution of Choice: Covenant University (CU)
- Course of Choice: Mechanical Engineering
- Gender: Male
8) Azoyenime Samuel Chukwuemeka
- Score: 372
- State of Origin: Delta
- Institution of Choice: Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife (OAU)
- Course of Choice: Aerospace Engineering
- Gender: Male
9) Oyebode Emmanuel Oluwapelumi
- Score: 372
- State of Origin: Ogun
- Institution of Choice: University of Lagos (UNILAG)
- Course of Choice: Petroleum & Gas Engineering
- Gender: Male
10) Omigie Cecil Osaigbovo
- Score: 372
- State of Origin: Edo
- Institution of Choice: University of Ibadan (UI)
- Course of Choice: Mechanical Engineering
- Gender: Male
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Anita John