Ethiopia’s education system is grappling with a profound crisis as efforts to curb cheating and raise academic standards have left thousands of students behind, unable to progress to university education. Over the past four years, nearly three million students have taken the revamped university entrance exam, yet fewer than five percent—only 142,600—have achieved the minimum score required for university admission. The challenges facing the sector remain stark: in the most recent academic year, 1,249 schools reported not a single student passing the exam, a figure that stubbornly persists despite ongoing policy changes aimed at improving outcomes.

These dismal pass rates are a reflection of systemic issues within Ethiopia’s education infrastructure. According to the Ministry of Education, only 8.4% of the 585,000 students who sat the university entrance exam in 2025 managed to pass, indicating only a slight improvement from previous years. This suggests that while reforms to curb widespread cheating have been somewhat effective, they have not yet translated into a substantial increase in academic achievement. Performance disparities are also evident across different types of schools and regions: boarding schools tend to outperform day schools, and students in the capital, Addis Ababa, have a higher success rate than their counterparts in rural areas.

The education crisis is not entirely recent. In late 2023, official announcements indicated that only about three percent of high school students passed the university entrance exam—a decline from previous years. Experts attributed these consistently low pass rates to a combination of factors including inadequate teaching materials, limited and outdated learning methodologies, as well as ongoing challenges such as teacher shortages and a lack of educational infrastructure. Speaking to Reuters at the time, the Education Minister underscored the devastating impact that rampant cheating had on the legitimacy of exam results and pledged tight controls to restore academic integrity.

Further complicating the landscape, the pass mark was even lowered in 2023 from 50% to 30% in a remedial effort to admit more students into higher education despite poor performances. This decision reflected the severity of the crisis and the government’s recognition that the education system was straining under the effects of past conflicts, including the protracted Tigray war, which disrupted schooling for large numbers of young Ethiopians. The lowered threshold, however, has not solved the underlying problems, as the scarcity of qualified teachers and the lack of resources continue to hamper students’ ability to succeed.

Beyond the immediate academic challenges, Ethiopia’s education system is also facing wider social and humanitarian pressures. Conflict, displacement, and climate shocks have left millions of children without access to consistent schooling. A 2024 report highlighted that only 5.4% of students passed the Grade 12 national exam that year, with some regions reporting no passers at all. These figures illuminate a broader crisis of access and equity within the education sector, driven by displacement and environmental factors, necessitating urgent and far-reaching reforms.

The government’s continued commitment to tackling exam malpractice and improving educational standards is commendable, but the persistence of extremely low pass rates points to deeper systemic failures. Addressing these will require investments beyond exam reforms, including enhanced teacher training, infrastructure development, and policies targeting regional disparities in educational access. Without such comprehensive measures, a generation risks being permanently left behind in Ethiopia’s quest for educational progress.

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Source: Noah Wire Services