The number of first-class candidates at the NLS increased by over 100% in 2023

First Class Honours at the Nigerian Law School have been a rarity, but 2023 saw a notable rise. At 251, it is the highest number of First Class candidates in a decade, 2x the number in 2022.

Source:

Media Reports

Period:

2014-2023
HTML code to embed chart
Want a bespoke report?
Reach out
Tags
Related Insights

Ghana accounted for 446 scholars in the US in 2023/24, representing 9.5% of all African scholars there
  • 446 Ghanaian scholars are in the US as of the 2023/24 academic session, making up 9.5% of the total number of African scholars in the US.
  • In the 2000/01 academic session, Ghana was the 7th leading source of African scholars with only 75 Ghanaian scholars in the US.
  • Nearly 1 in African scholars in the US is a Ghanaian.
  • Ghana scholarly population in the US have grown by 497%.

Egypt and Nigeria were Africa’s leading sources of international scholars in the US in 2023/24
  • Egypt remained the lead African country with the highest number of international scholars in the US, with 942 recorded in the 2023/2024 academic session.
  • As of the 2023/2024 academic session, 4,679 international scholars in the United States of America are from Africa.
  • A total of 931 international scholars in the US as of the same session are from Nigeria.
  • Africa produced 4.2% of the international scholars in the US for the session under review.

Nigerian scholars in the US nearly quadruple in two decades, rising from 176 in 2000/01 to 931 in 2023/24
  • Nigeria has been the second leading source of African scholars in the US since 2008/09 to 2023/24, after overtaking South Africa.
  • By the 2023/24 academic session, the number of Nigerian scholars in the US reached 931.
  • Given past trends, it’s not unrealistic to predict that Nigeria could surpass Egypt in the near future, just as it did South Africa.
  • Approximately 20% of the African scholars in the US are Nigerians.

China leads US international scholars with more than 23,000 in 2023/24, nearly 21% of global total
  • China continued to lead globally with the highest number of international scholars in the US, with almost 21% of the international scholars as of 2023/2024.
  • China has been the lead country with the highest number of scholars in the US globally in the last 24 years.
  • India is next after China, with 17,735 scholars in US who hailed from India making up 15.8% of the population.
  • Only 1% of the scholars in the US are from Nigeria

2025 sees unprecedented surge as 17,000 candidates score above 300 in JAMB; highest in 13 years
  • No candidate scored above 300 until 2015, with just 40 high scorers that year out of over 1.46 million candidates.
  • 2025 marked the highest ever with 17,025 candidates scoring above 300, nearly double the count in 2024 and more than triple 2023.
  • From 2022 to 2025, above-300 scorers consistently remained over 5,000 each year, showing a steady rise in top scores.
  • Despite the growth in numbers of JAMB candidates, high scorers still make up less than 1% annually.

2024 Nigerian Law School results
  • Over 36% of candidates earned a Second Class Lower.
  • One in every 27 candidates achieved a First Class Honours.
  • More than 16% secured a Second Class Upper.
  • 181 candidates were absent for the exam, roughly 2.5% of the total.
  • 327 candidates earned a Conditional Pass, requiring further requirements for full qualification.

POPULAR TOPICS
SIGN UP TO OUR NEWSLETTER
Get periodic updates about the African startup space, access to our reports, among others.
Subscribe Here
Subscription Form

A product of Techpoint Africa. All rights reserved