Latest news and stories about exams in Portugal for expats and residents.
The results for the second phase of national secondary school exam re-evaluations will be released on September 14. The government delayed the publication from the original August 28 date to provide teachers with additional time for rest.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation confirmed that second-phase national exam results and first-phase re-evaluation outcomes will be posted this Friday. While results were sent to schools on Thursday, the National Examination Jury (Júri Nacional de Exames or JNE) noted that the volume of re-evaluation requests caused minor delays. Students will be able to access their grades and digital versions of their exams throughout the day.
Update: Exam results release timeline clarified
Although the government initially aimed to deliver results to schools by 5:30 PM on Thursday, some institutions reported receiving them as late as 7:00 PM. Grades are scheduled to be posted at schools by 9:30 AM on Friday, and students who received grade changes from first-phase re-evaluations have until Monday to apply for higher education.
The National Examination Jury (Júri Nacional de Exames or JNE) is the public body responsible for organizing, managing, and overseeing national exams in Portugal. It ensures the integrity of the testing process, including the distribution of exam papers to teachers for grading and the final certification of student results.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation (Ministério da Educação, Ciência e Inovação, MECI) is Portugal's national ministry responsible for education policy from pre‑school through higher education and for national science and innovation policy. In this story MECI announced that public higher education will have 78,283 places for the 2026/2027 academic year, an increase of 1,465 from the current year, which affects university admissions and capacity planning for students and institutions.
A new monitoring system called 'Pré-PCS' has been implemented to address recurring technical failures in the digital grading of national secondary school exams. Developed with support from the consultancy firm Deloitte and the Institute for Education, Quality and Assessment (Instituto de Educação, Qualidade e Avaliação or Eduqa), the system aims to ensure accuracy and prevent the data errors that impacted students in the first phase of examinations.
The EduQA is the institute responsible for the design and management of national exams in Portugal. It oversees the creation of assessment materials and is currently under review following reports of errors in recent examination content.
The National Federation of Education believes that Fernando Alexandre should not be the only one to take responsibility for what went wrong with the national exams.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation has announced an extraordinary national exam session for secondary school students from September 3 to 8. This measure follows technical issues in the electronic grading system, allowing all students eligible for the second phase to retake their exams, with the best grade counting toward their final results. Registration for this special session is open from July 27 to July 31.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation (Ministério da Educação, Ciência e Inovação, MECI) is Portugal's national ministry responsible for education policy from pre‑school through higher education and for national science and innovation policy. In this story MECI announced that public higher education will have 78,283 places for the 2026/2027 academic year, an increase of 1,465 from the current year, which affects university admissions and capacity planning for students and institutions.
The Association of Geography Teachers has requested an urgent review of the automatic grading parameters for item 12.1 in the Geography A national exam. This follows two previously identified errors in the same test, prompting teachers to contact the National Exams Jury and the president of EduQA, Luís Santos, to ensure fair assessment for the 16,714 students who took the exam.
Only Portuguese Literature presented a failing average in the first phase
The second phase of national secondary school exams started today amid ongoing student uncertainty regarding first-phase results caused by digital system errors. Education Minister Fernando Alexandre has ruled out his resignation, maintaining that the government's exam schedule remains in place.
Update: President demands equality in national exams
President António José Seguro met with Prime Minister Luís Montenegro to demand that the government ensure equality for all students following the technical failures. The president of the Institute for Education, Quality and Assessment (Instituto de Educação, Qualidade e Avaliação or EduQa), Luís Pereira dos Santos, insisted that the digital system was tested multiple times before the exams began.
Fernando Alexandre is the Minister of Education, Science, and Innovation in Portugal's current government, which took office in April 2024. An economist by training, he previously served as a Secretary of State and is now responsible for managing the national school system and university funding. He recently sparked debate by suggesting that university tuition fees should be adjusted to account for inflation.
António José Martins Seguro (born March 11, 1962, in Penamacor) is a lawyer, political scientist, and the current President of the Portuguese Republic, inaugurated on March 9, 2026 after winning the two-round presidential election in January–February 2026.
Career: He led Socialist Youth (1990–1994), served as MEP (1999–2001), was Minister Adjunct to PM António Guterres (2001–2002), and led the PS parliamentary group (2004–2005). Elected PS Secretary-General in 2011 with 68%, he led the opposition during Portugal's bailout era. In 2014, António Costa defeated him in party primaries by a landslide, prompting Seguro's resignation and a decade-long retreat from politics. He returned in 2025, launching the movement UPortugal and announcing his presidential candidacy in June. He received official PS backing in October 2025 and won the presidency in February 2026.
Political philosophy: Seguro positions himself as representing a "modern and moderate" left, advocating financial responsibility while opposing austerity. As President, he has emphasized institutional trust, efficient governance, and a collaborative relationship with the government while maintaining rigorous constitutional oversight.
Luís Filipe Montenegro Cardoso de Morais Esteves (born February 16, 1973, in Porto) is a Portuguese lawyer and center‑right politician who has served as Prime Minister of Portugal since April 2, 2024. A long‑time member of the Social Democratic Party (PSD), he is the leading figure of the post‑Troika generation of Portuguese conservatives. Montenegro was elected to the Assembly of the Republic in 2002 for the Aveiro district and remained an MP for 16 years, becoming PSD parliamentary leader from 2011 to 2017 during the bailout and austerity period under Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho. He was a prominent defender of strict austerity measures, arguing in 2014 that “the life of the people is no better, but the life of the country is a lot better,” a phrase that has followed his public image since. After an unsuccessful leadership bid against Rui Rio in 2020, Montenegro won the PSD leadership in 2022. He then forged the centre‑right Democratic Alliance (PSD–CDS‑PP and allies), which won a plurality of seats in the 2024 legislative election. Refusing to partner with the far‑right Chega, which he has called “often xenophobic, racist, populist and excessively demagogic,” he formed a minority government as head of the XXIV Constitutional Government on April 2, 2024. His first government fell in March 2025 after a no‑confidence vote linked to a conflict‑of‑interest affair, but fresh elections saw the Democratic Alliance increase its seat share, allowing Montenegro to return as prime minister leading the XXV Constitutional Government. His importance to Portugal lies in attempting to re‑center the traditional centre‑right after the crisis years, defending liberal‑conservative economics and EU alignment while drawing a sharp line against formal cooperation with the radical right, thus shaping how Portuguese democracy manages its new multi‑party era.
The EduQA is the institute responsible for the design and management of national exams in Portugal. It oversees the creation of assessment materials and is currently under review following reports of errors in recent examination content.
The National Exams Jury (Júri Nacional de Exames or JNE) has extended the registration deadline for the second phase of the Geography A national exam until the end of Tuesday. The extension follows a parameterization error in the marking scheme for two items, which required the reclassification of student grades. Schools are currently receiving the corrected results.
The National Examination Jury (Júri Nacional de Exames or JNE) is the public body responsible for organizing, managing, and overseeing national exams in Portugal. It ensures the integrity of the testing process, including the distribution of exam papers to teachers for grading and the final certification of student results.
With the uncertainty resulting from delays in posting 12th-grade exam grades, students are calculating the deadlines for the second phase of exams and higher education applications. These are the key dates.
The National Examination Jury (Júri Nacional de Exames) confirmed that 9th-grade exam results will not be posted this Friday as originally scheduled due to grading delays. While the Minister of Education stated all exams are graded, the government has refused to set a specific time for their release, leaving schools and students in uncertainty. Opposition figures have criticized the handling of the process, with some calling for the Minister of Education to step down.
Update: National exam grades released amid ongoing delays and errors
Secondary school exam grades finally reached schools late Friday evening, though many students remain in limbo with “suspended” classifications due to missing exam components. Minister of Education Fernando Alexandre requested an additional effort from school principals to post results, while President of the Republic António José Seguro acknowledged the process did not go well and called for an audit to prevent future failures.
The National Examination Jury (Júri Nacional de Exames or JNE) is the public body responsible for organizing, managing, and overseeing national school exams in Portugal. It ensures that testing procedures are consistent across all schools and handles the official publication of student grades.
Fernando Alexandre is the Minister of Education, Science, and Innovation in Portugal's current government, which took office in April 2024. An economist by training, he previously served as a Secretary of State and is now responsible for managing the national school system and university funding. He recently sparked debate by suggesting that university tuition fees should be adjusted to account for inflation.
António José Martins Seguro (born March 11, 1962, in Penamacor) is a lawyer, political scientist, and the current President of the Portuguese Republic, inaugurated on March 9, 2026 after winning the two-round presidential election in January–February 2026.
Career: He led Socialist Youth (1990–1994), served as MEP (1999–2001), was Minister Adjunct to PM António Guterres (2001–2002), and led the PS parliamentary group (2004–2005). Elected PS Secretary-General in 2011 with 68%, he led the opposition during Portugal's bailout era. In 2014, António Costa defeated him in party primaries by a landslide, prompting Seguro's resignation and a decade-long retreat from politics. He returned in 2025, launching the movement UPortugal and announcing his presidential candidacy in June. He received official PS backing in October 2025 and won the presidency in February 2026.
Political philosophy: Seguro positions himself as representing a "modern and moderate" left, advocating financial responsibility while opposing austerity. As President, he has emphasized institutional trust, efficient governance, and a collaborative relationship with the government while maintaining rigorous constitutional oversight.
Minister of Education, Science and Innovation Fernando Alexandre has admitted that the new electronic grading system for national exams faced significant technical obstacles. While he guarantees that all papers will be graded by July 17, he acknowledged that 20% of responses remain unprocessed and promised that the state will compensate families who can prove financial losses due to the delays.
Fernando Alexandre is the Minister of Education, Science, and Innovation in Portugal's current government, which took office in April 2024. An economist by training, he previously served as a Secretary of State and is now responsible for managing the national school system and university funding. He recently sparked debate by suggesting that university tuition fees should be adjusted to account for inflation.
