The National President of the Association of Tutorial School Operators, Prince Adewale Idowu, has called on the Federal Government and Nigerian universities to extend admission deadlines to accommodate students affected by the delayed release of the 2026 National Examinations Council, NECO, results.
Idowu said the delay had created serious academic, financial and psychological challenges for candidates seeking admission into tertiary institutions for the 2026/2027 academic session.
Speaking on Trade FM’s Business of Learning, the tutorial operators’ president said the 2026 NECO results were released on September 24, 63 days after the examination, leaving some candidates struggling to meet university deadlines for the uploading of their O’Level results.
According to him, some students who relied solely on NECO could lose their admission opportunities if university portals close before they are able to upload their results.
“The NECO delay is not just about results. It is about destroying the future of the Nigerian students who have done nothing,” Idowu said.
He warned that students who lose admission because of the delay could be forced to wait another year before gaining admission, with possible implications for their education and career progression.
“You can imagine a delay in two months, for example, which will be costing the student 12 months at home,” he said.
Idowu also expressed concern about the psychological impact of the situation on affected candidates, saying students were being left anxious and frustrated as they watched their colleagues proceed with admission and begin their university education.
“There will be anxiety, depression, frustration. Of course, they see their mates already schooling while they keep refreshing portals every hour,” he said.
The association president said families could also suffer financial losses, having already spent money on JAMB registration, post-UTME applications and tutorial programmes.
He added that tutorial centres were affected because the delay disrupted their academic calendars and made it difficult to plan for the next session.
“When these students are delayed, it destroys our calendar. We cannot plan because we’ll be forced to keep students again who have graduated,” Idowu said.
He further argued that the delay could create additional pressure on universities, as candidates unable to secure admission in the current cycle would join the pool of applicants seeking admission the following year.
Idowu also raised concerns about inequality among candidates, noting that students who could afford to sit both WAEC and NECO might have alternatives, while those who depended solely on NECO could be more affected by delayed results.
On the growing adoption of computer-based testing, CBT, by examination bodies, Idowu questioned why candidates should still wait several weeks for their results.
“What is the essence of CBT when a result is delayed for more than two months?” he asked, comparing NECO’s 63-day result timeline with the faster processing of JAMB results.
He said the issue showed the need for better coordination beyond the adoption of examination technology.
Idowu called on the Federal Ministry of Education to bring together the West African Examinations Council, WAEC, NECO, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, and the National Universities Commission, NUC, to harmonise examination, result-release and admission calendars.
“The government should try and work on these dates. They should bring them together… WAEC, NECO, JAMB, NUC together for harmonisation of dates,” he said.
According to him, students should have access to their O’Level results before the commencement of major admission processes, including post-UTME screening and other institutional requirements.
He also appealed to universities to extend or reopen their O’Level result-upload portals to accommodate candidates whose NECO results were released after some admission deadlines.
“If the students will enter universities by November, why rush? Why do we close our borders?” Idowu asked, urging universities to give affected candidates more time to complete their admission requirements.
He said such an extension would prevent qualified candidates from losing an entire academic year because of circumstances beyond their control.
Idowu further called for a return to a shorter timeline for releasing NECO results, saying the examination body should ensure that future candidates do not face similar challenges.
He acknowledged that NECO had apologised for the delay and explained that additional time was required for processes including marking, verification and quality assurance, but argued that the impact on students should also be considered.
The tutorial operators’ president also raised legal questions over the delay, suggesting that affected candidates and stakeholders could consider petitions to the National Assembly or other avenues for redress. He, however, acknowledged that he was not a lawyer.
He urged the Federal Government to intervene and ensure that the delayed results do not deprive qualified students of admission opportunities.
For students who have already received their NECO results but remain uncertain about admission, Idowu urged them not to lose hope.
“They should not lose hope. Most importantly, when they have good results, they should still keep their hopes alive that government will not be quiet. Government will not be silent,” he said.
He maintained that government and relevant education authorities could still take steps to accommodate affected candidates and prevent the delay from unnecessarily disrupting their educational progression.
