Form Six exam results: 99.95 percent pass, 70 disqualified for cheating

Unguja. The National Examinations Council of Tanzania (Necta) has announced the 2025 Form Six exam results, revealing an overall pass rate of 99.95 percent among 126,135 candidates a slight increase of 0.03 percentage points from the 99.92 percent recorded in 2024.

The results were unveiled on Sunday, 7 July 2025, in Zanzibar by Necta’s Executive Secretary, Prof Said Mohamed.

Prof Mohamed announced that 790 candidates, equivalent to 0.62 percent, did not sit for the exams.

Of the remaining 125,779 candidates, 99.95 percent passed while only 68 candidates (0.05 percent) failed.

“In 2024, 103,252 candidates — representing 99.92 percent — passed the exams,” he noted.

Regarding gender performance, Prof Mohamed confirmed that both female and male candidates performed equally well, with 61,953 female and 63,826 male candidates passing, each group achieving a 99.95 percent pass rate.

He further revealed that 125,375 candidates (99.62 percent) attained top grades ranging from Division One to Division Three (I to III).

Among these, 61,120 candidates (48.57 percent) achieved Division One, while 49,385 candidates (39.24 percent) earned Division Two.

This reflects a 0.22 percent improvement in quality compared to 102,719 candidates (99.40 percent) who attained Divisions I to III in 2024.

In a related announcement, Prof Mohamed disclosed that Necta had cancelled the results of 71 candidates due to examination misconduct, while withholding results of 244 others for health-related and other issues.

Of the cancelled results, 70 were from Form Six candidates and one from a Grade A Teaching Certificate (GATCE) candidate.

“These cancellations were issued under Section 5(2)(i) and (j) of the National Examinations Council Act, Chapter 107, together with Section 30(2)(b) of the 2016 examination regulations,” explained Prof Mohamed.

He said the action was necessary after some candidates were found with prohibited items such as mobile phones and smartwatches, and others were caught assisting each other during exams.

“The misconduct was self-committed by candidates who brought banned items or written notes into exam rooms, clearly violating examination rules,” stated Prof Mohamed.

He added that in several cases, candidates’ answer scripts displayed identical handwriting and striking similarities, indicating collusion.

In addition to cancelling results, Prof Mohamed emphasised Necta’s commitment to educating students about the risks and consequences of cheating.

Regarding the withheld results, Prof Mohamed said they involved 235 Form Six candidates, four GATCE candidates, and five candidates who sat for the Diploma in Secondary Education Examination (DSEE).

“The withholding is due to various reasons, including illness preventing candidates from completing all their subjects or significant portions thereof,” he explained.

“These candidates will be allowed to retake the missed subjects in 2026, as stipulated by Section 32(1) of the examination regulations,” added Prof Mohamed.

This year’s results reaffirm the high performance of Form Six candidates nationwide, with the overall pass rate edging up slightly from last year.