Sixty students score zero in Basque PAU exam; Basque Government and EHU clash over review

What happened

Students who took the Basque language and literature exam in this year's PAU (formerly Selectividad) have reported a wave of zeros and very low marks. Most affected are from private‑subsidised schools following model A or B, where Basque is an additional subject rather than the main language of instruction. The tribunal assigned to six centres – including Munabe in Loiu, Ayalde‑Munabe in Leioa, Colegio Vizcaya in Zamudio, and El Carmen, María Inmaculada and Nuestra Señora de la Merced in Bilbao – concentrated the anomalous results. Students say the exam, held on 2 June at the Faculty of Economics and Business in Sarriko, was not difficult and that their course marks were much higher.

“A zero would be for copying or leaving the exam blank, and that did not happen.”

Government intervenes

On Tuesday 16 June the Basque Government held an emergency meeting with EHU rector Joxerramon Bengoetxea. Councillors Begoña Pedrosa (Education) and Juan Ignacio Pérez (Universities) demanded that the review process be fair and transparent. Spokesperson María Ubarretxena said the executive understands “the families’ concern” and called for “rigour, transparency and speed,” while insisting that the situation not be used “to attack Basque.”

“We understand the families’ concern, because this is a very important test for their future.”

University hits back

EHU responded with a firm statement rejecting the government’s demand for speed. The university stressed that the PAU is organised jointly by the two institutions and that correction is carried out under “strict criteria of objectivity, anonymity and confidentiality.” It added that it makes “no sense to demand greater speed” because the procedure follows a legally regulated public calendar, and it accused the government of endangering public confidence in the process.

What next

The deadline for requesting a review was 15 June, and final marks are expected to be published the following Monday. Affected students, who protested outside the Bilbao Engineering School, say their university choices are now at risk. Both sides say they want a fair outcome, but the public dispute has exposed tensions between the administration and the public university.