- After several years of low pass rates that raised concerns about academic preparedness and the quality of secondary education, the University of Liberia's November 2025 entrance examination has recorded a notable improvement, outperforming results from both 2023 and 2024 admission cycles.
According to results released in mid-January 2026, 3,277 of the 7,998 candidates who took the November 2025 entrance exam passed, yielding a 40.97% pass rate. The outcome represents a significant gain over the July 2024 main entrance exam and the July 2023 second entrance exam, each of which recorded pass rates of about 28.32%.
The improvement is especially striking when viewed against the scale of previous intakes. The July 2024 entrance exam, widely considered the main admission cycle for the 2024/2025 academic year, registered 13,130 candidates, with 12,516 actually sitting* for the test. Of that number, only 2,807 candidates passed, while 9,299 failed, underscoring a failure rate of more than 74%. In addition, 410 candidates, or 3.28%, were disqualified for improperly shading their examination numbers, a procedural error that further reduced the pool of successful applicants.
Gender performance in July 2024 was near parity, with 1,415 females (50.4%) and 1,392 males (49.6%) among those who passed. The strongest performances were recorded in the T.J.R. Faulkner College of Science and Technology and the A. Romeo Horton College of Business and Public Administration, a trend consistent across multiple entrance cycles.
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A year earlier, the July 2023 second entrance exam reflected similar challenges. Out of *10,034 candidates, only 2,699 passed, yielding a pass rate identical to that of July 2024. The back-to-back low outcomes fueled public debate over the readiness of high school graduates and the effectiveness of Liberia's pre-university education system.
In contrast, the November 2025 entrance exam shows a measurable shift. Although fewer candidates took the test, the pass rate increased by more than 12 percentage points compared with the previous two cycles. University officials say the improved outcome reflects stronger performance across key academic disciplines, particularly in science and business programs, and better overall test readiness.
Female candidates led the November 2025 results, accounting for 53.31% of successful examinees, marking a departure from the near gender balance seen in earlier years and highlighting the growing academic competitiveness of female applicants.
Education analysts caution that while the 2025 results are encouraging, they do not erase longstanding concerns. Thousands of candidates still failed to meet the university's admission benchmark, and access to quality secondary education remains uneven, especially for students from public schools.
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Nevertheless, the 2025 entrance exam stands out as the strongest performance in three years, signaling progress for the University of Liberia as it works to balance academic standards with broader access. Successful candidates have been invited to apply for admission through the university's Center for Testing and Evaluation, as UL prepares for the next academic year with renewed, if cautious, optimism.
