Another paper leak? Mexico's top university orders re-exam for 58,000 students - Here's why

Another paper leak has surfaced, but this time it is not in India, it is in Mexico. The country largest university - The National Autonomous University of Mexico (Unam) - has announced that about 58,000 students will have to resit their entrance exam after abnormally high test results raised suspicions of widespread cheating in the online version of the test. The university said that students will conduct in person examination. This has led to protest by applicants in Mexico City.

The university’s rector, Leonardo Lomelí apologised to the students saying: “I offer an apology to the candidates who, having been fairly accepted, will be called upon to take the control exam. However, it is necessary to ensure certainty and guarantee equity in access.” He added, “The Unam, the home of science, humanities and understanding, knows how to recognie mistakes and self-correct. There is no evasion or complacency. There is responsibility and we act accordingly."

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Why the university announced re-examination?

The university conducted “at-home entrance test” this summer, that included an AI-powered webcam to monitor candidates with voice and facial recognition to ensure no cheating took place. Almost 160,000 students took the entrance exam. But the results made the university suspicious.

According to the university, between 2021 and 2025 only 3.5 per cent of applicants obtained a score of 100 or more out of 120, but this year the figure was 16 per cent. The proportion of students who achieved a score of 110 or more increased sixfold from 0.9 per cent to 5.5 per cent. The number of candidates getting 100 in medical programme also increased to 30 per cent compared to last year's 9 per cent. The university had began online exam to provide greater accessibility to students. Students previously had to travel to Mexico City from their home states, sometimes many hundreds of miles away to appear in the examination.

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A technical expert who reviewed the results told the New York Times (NYT) that nearly half of the exams – 75,000 tests – could have involved some degree of cheating. Cheating tips were also widely passed around before the test went live, according to the NYT. The Unam announced in July that it had filed a criminal complaint after detecting the alleged irregularities. Lomelí said announced that the academic year for new students would begin on 31 August, rather than 10 August as originally scheduled.

Meanwhile, Mexican president, Claudia Sheinbaum reacted to the row and suggested that the country’s attorney general may have to investigate. “Support is always available, but in any case if a crime has been committed it is a matter for the prosecutor’s office,” she said.