A total of 166,402 candidates have started writing the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) examinations — marking the third and final series of national assessments this year.
According to the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB), the exams will run until Friday, December 5, 2025, across 2,844 examination centers nationwide.
This year’s candidature represents a 14.6% increase from last year’s 141,996 candidates. Of the total, 42,328 candidates (25%) are government-sponsored under the Universal Post-O-Level Education and Training (UPOLET) program, while 124,074 candidates (75%) are privately sponsored.
In terms of gender distribution, 77,772 candidates (44%) are female, while 93,630 (56%) are male.
The examination process officially began with a nationwide briefing held at all centers on Friday, November 7, 2025.
The 2025 UACE examinations are being conducted under the theme: “Embracing Security and Holistic Assessment of Learners in a Dynamic Environment.”
UNEB has reaffirmed its commitment to maintaining the integrity of the examinations and warned candidates and the public against any form of malpractice.
The board revealed that 55 individuals were arrested during the recent PLE and UCE examinations over malpractice-related offenses.
UNEB Executive Director Dan Odongo cautioned that anyone found engaging in or aiding examination malpractice faces a fine of up to shs 20 million, imprisonment for up to five years, or both.
The UACE examinations mark the culmination of the 2025 national assessment cycle, following the Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE) and the Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) exams held earlier this year.
