The first phase of the National Higher Education Access Competition (Concurso Nacional de Acesso ao Ensino Superior or CNAES) saw nearly 50,000 students placed in universities. Polytechnic institutions experienced a 24.5% growth in placements, a trend attributed to their recent rebranding as polytechnic universities and relaxed entrance requirements. Aerospace Engineering at the University of Porto remains the most competitive course, requiring an entry grade of 19.5.
Polytechnic universities see surge in student applications
Saturday, 22 August 2026AI summary
Context & Explainers
The National Higher Education Access Competition (Concurso Nacional de Acesso ao Ensino Superior or CNAES) is the centralized system used by students to apply for public university and polytechnic degree programs in Portugal. Managed by the Directorate-General for Higher Education, it allocates spots based on national entrance exam scores and secondary school grades.
8 sources
- Vacancies for three of the University of Minho's new double degree programmes are already sold outeco.sapo.pt ·
- From 19.5 to 9.7: the hardest courses to get into and where vacancies remain in Higher Educationdn.pt ·
- Number of students placed in Polytechnic Higher Education grows by over 20%dn.pt ·
- There was a significant increase in grades: how grade reviews affected access to higher educationcnnportugal.iol.pt ·
- Over 1,600 disadvantaged students placed in higher educationcmjornal.pt ·
- Majority of students admitted to their first choicertp.pt ·
- New name for polytechnics attracts more studentsobservador.pt ·
- Find out which university course has the highest entry grade in Portugalcontacto.lu ·
