Education: Education quality news in Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal

The Federation of National Teachers' Unions (Federação Nacional dos Professores or Fenprof) has called for the resignation of the Minister of Education, Fernando Alexandre. Secretary-general José Feliciano Costa accused the minister of creating a climate of suspicion toward teachers following the recent national exam grading failures.

The Lisbon City Council has approved the elimination of a 50% discount on school meals for students not covered by the School Social Action (Ação Social Escolar or ASE) program. While the measure ends the discount for most students, the council also approved a proposal to maintain meal subsidies for disadvantaged families during school holidays.

Lisbon City Council is considering a proposal to eliminate the 50% discount on school meals for students not covered by the Social School Action (Ação Social Escolar or ASE) program. Education Councillor Rodrigo Mello Gonçalves stated the change aims to focus support on lower-income families, though the opposition, including the Socialist Party and Left Bloc, has criticized the move as harmful to the middle class.

The Council of Ministers has approved a new social action model for higher education, raising the average annual grant from 1,734 euros to 2,660 euros. The government is increasing its total investment to 220 million euros for the 2026/2027 academic year, with maximum grants reaching up to 7,818 euros for displaced students from low-income households.

The Nova School of Business & Economics (Nova School of Business & Economics or Nova SBE) has reached the top 10 in the latest Financial Times ranking for executive education, marking its highest position to date. Portugal now has six institutions featured in the global list, with the Católica Porto Business School making its debut this year.

Rector Paulo Pereira requested an urgent meeting with the Ministry of Education following reports that the Nova School of Business and Economics (Faculdade de Economia or Nova SBE) seeks formal separation from the Universidade Nova de Lisboa. While the school denies wanting an institutional divorce, it continues to push for greater management autonomy and the use of English-language branding. Students and staff should note that the university leadership maintains there has been no interference in the school's internal affairs.

Thousands of students marched in Lisbon on National Student Day (Dia Nacional do Estudante) to demand free higher education and more student housing. The protest coincided with comments from Education Minister Fernando Alexandre, who suggested that tuition fees (propinas) should be adjusted for inflation after being frozen for several years. The government has promised 14,000 new beds in student residences by the next academic year to address the housing crisis. Families with university students should be aware of potential cost increases in future state budgets.