UCE 2025 PERFORMANCE: Best, Worst Done Subjects, Performance by Gender, and Examination Malpractice Under CBC New Lower Secondary Curriculum (Second Cohort)

Education and Sports Minister Janet Museveni and officials from Uganda National Examinations Board (Uneb) have released 2025 UCE results for the Competence Based Curriculum (CBC) — known sometimes as the New Lower Secondary Curriculum (NLSC). In the following report, The Pearl Times looks at UCE 2025 performance as detailed by Uneb executive director Dan Odongo:

CANDIDATURE

A total of 432,163 candidates from 3,975 examination centres registered for the #UCE2025 examination, compared to 359,417 candidates in 2024, representing an increase of 72,746 candidates (20.2%).

Candidate Distribution

• Males: 204,292 (47.3%)
• Females: 227,871 (52.7%)

Programme Category

• USE beneficiaries: 154,642 (35.8%)
• Non-USE candidates: 277,521 (64.2%)

Examination Attendance (2025)

• Candidates present: 429,949 (99.5%)
• Candidates absent: 2,214 (0.5%)

In comparison, 357,120 candidates sat for the examination in 2024.

As observed in 2024, the rate of absenteeism continues to decline, reflecting improved candidate participation and retention.

Special Needs Candidates (SNE)

A total of 708 Special Needs Education (SNE) candidates registered for the 2025 examination, comprising 342 males and 366 females, compared to 743 candidates in 2024.

Category Breakdown

The registered candidates included:

• Blind: 27
• Low vision: 116
• Deaf: 60
• Dyslexic: 90
• Physically handicapped: 72
• Other disabilities requiring extra time: 343

The “other disabilities” category includes candidates with sickle cell anaemia, epilepsy, and circumstantial disabilities, such as victims of accidents.

Attendance

Absent candidates: 4 (0.6%)

Support Arrangements by the Board

The Board made comprehensive provisions to ensure accessibility and fairness, including:

• Modification of examination questions
• Braille-format question papers for blind candidates
• Support personnel for physically handicapped and dyslexic candidates
• Sign Language interpreters for deaf candidates
• Enlarged-print question papers for candidates with low vision
• An additional 45 minutes per paper for all SNE candidates

GRADING AND PERFORMANCE

Comparison of General Candidates’ Performance for the 2025 and 2024 UCE Examinations Under the Competency-Based Curriculum, candidate performance is reported using achievement levels represented by the letter grades A, B, C, D, and E.

The achievement levels for each subject were determined through systematic, technical processes involving statistical and psychometric analysis. These processes integrate:

• Continuous Assessment (CA) conducted at school level — 20% contribution
• End-of-Cycle Examination score — 80% contribution

This combined assessment approach ensures a balanced and holistic evaluation of learner performance under the competency-based framework.

Achievement levels in the 2025 UCE examination demonstrate a marked improvement compared to 2024.

The overall results indicate that 428,628 candidates (99.69%) who sat for the 2025 examination qualified for the UCE certificate.

This outcome will be reflected on both the transcript and the certificate as Result 1.

The percentage of candidates who did not qualify for the UCE certificate has declined significantly, dropping from 1.9% in 2024 to just 0.31% in 2025.

These outcomes will be indicated on candidates’ transcripts as either Result 2 or Result 3, defined as follows:

Result 2: Indicates that a candidate did not fulfil all the conditions for award, for example:

• Missing a project score
• Sitting for fewer subjects than required
• Lack of Continuous Assessment (CA) scores

Result 3: Indicates that a candidate scored below the basic level (Grade E) in all subjects.

EXAMINATION MALPRACTICE

Cases of examination malpractice at this level remain minimal, with only 63 cases reported.

The nature and design of the examination items do not easily lend themselves to malpractice. However, the few cases recorded were predominantly in: Mathematics, and Practical papers in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology.

In these instances, there was overwhelming evidence that some candidates were provided with experimental results by teachers, which they merely copied into their tables.

Under the Competency-Based Assessment (CBA) framework, candidates are required to use the given scenario to design and conduct investigations using the provided apparatus. Where external assistance occurred, the investigation designs produced by candidates did not correspond with the recorded results, clearly indicating malpractice.

FEEDBACK FROM CANDIDATES ON THE EXAMINATION

A random sample of 36,546 candidates drawn from 118 districts, of whom 49.7% were female, was used to gather feedback on key quality aspects of the examination.

A short questionnaire was administered to candidates immediately after they exited the examination room. This exercise was conducted across different dates over a two-week period.

Key Findings

Based on candidate responses:

• 3% indicated that the examination items were within the syllabus
• 7% found the time allocated to be adequate
• 2% reported that the items were clearly presented
• Perceived Level of Difficulty
• 7% found the examination easy
• 4% found the examination fair
• 8% found the examination difficult

PERFORMANCE IN SUBJECTS

Higher exceptional levels of achievements are noted in Christian Religious Education, Geography and English Language compared to 2024. More candidates have achieved at higher levels of C and above in 2025 compared to 2024. This is quite encouraging in the Sciences where percentages of candidates who have not achieved at at least the D level have dropped very significantly.

The examiners report that although significant improvements have been made, the problem as observed in the 2024 examination, is the failure of candidates to interpret the scenarios, or connect the scenarios and the materials supplied to real life situations, or interpret the results of the experiments carried out and create meaning that connects to everyday situations. These competencies are at the core of the curriculum. The implication is that teachers need to do much more to guide the learners towards this focus. This curriculum is not merely about learning of facts, but emphasizes training of the mind to think

PERFOMANCE BY GENDER

Female candidates demonstrated higher achievement levels in English Language and Christian Religious Education.

In the other subjects like, History and Political Education, Geography, Mathematics, Agriculture, Physics, Chemistry and Biology, the proportions of females in the exceptional and outstanding levels are slightly lower than that of males.

PERFOMANCE OF PRISONS CANDIDATES

At the Uganda Government Upper Prison School, Luzira, 40 candidates were registered. Of the 40 candidates who registered, 39 candidates sat; while one did not sit for the examination. All the candidates qualified for the UCE certificate.

At Mbarara Main Prison Inmates’ Secondary School, 12 candidates were registered and they all sat for the examination. All of them also qualified for the UCE certificate.

Take a look at the explanation on the New Grading System Under New Lower Secondary Competence Based Curriculum Here.

The list of Uganda’s Top 200 Best Performing Schools With Most As in UCE New Lower Secondary Curriculum is Here.

The list of Best Performing Schools in Buganda (Central Region) With Over 100 As in UCE New Curriculum is Here.

The list of Best Performing Schools in Western Uganda (per district) in UCE New Curriculum is  Here.

You can see our full briefing on UCE performance showing Worst and Done Subjects, Performance by Gender, and Examination Malpractice Under CBC New Lower Secondary Curriculum Here.