Portugal Places 49,991 Students in Higher Education First Phase as Applications Rise

Admission numbers and applicant preferences

A total of 49,991 students secured places in Portuguese public higher education institutions during the first phase of the national access competition for the 2026/2027 academic year. Data released on Friday by the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation indicated an 82.6% placement rate across 60,513 valid applications. Placements increased by 6,092 students (up 13.9%) compared to 2025, while total applications grew by 11,795 over the same period. Excluding 2020, when exceptional rules applied during the COVID-19 pandemic, this represents the highest placement total in a decade and the largest candidate pool since 1996. Among placed applicants, 53.6% (26,819 students) entered their first choice, 19.3% (9,643 students) secured their second choice, and 84.5% entered one of their top three selections. Total student demand exceeded initial capacity by 4,285 candidates.

Institutional occupancy and regional divide

The overall national occupancy rate reached 88.9%, representing an increase of 9.5 percentage points from 2025. University programs placed 33,312 students (66.6% of the total, up 8.4% from 2025) and reached a 95.7% occupancy rate, with institutions like the University of Porto (99.1%), the University of Lisbon (98.9%), and ISCTE (98.8%) nearly full. Polytechnic institutes placed 16,679 students (33.4% of the total, an increase of 26.5% over 2025), reaching 77.9% occupancy. The placement gap between universities and polytechnics narrowed from 28.7 percentage points in 2025 to 17.8 percentage points in 2026. Geographic disparities persisted: coastal institutions reached a 94.1% occupancy rate, compared to 69.2% for inland institutions. While inland institutions held 19.8% of initial openings, they accounted for 52.4% of the openings remaining for the second phase.

Competitive courses and academic cutoffs

Aerospace Engineering at the University of Porto registered the highest admission cutoff for the third consecutive year, with the last placed candidate entering with an average score of 19.5 out of 20 points. Aerospace Engineering at the University of Minho followed in second place, while Medicine at the University of Porto took third. Law at the University of Lisbon recorded the largest cohort with 445 students admitted and no remaining openings, followed by Law at the University of Coimbra with 350 placements. Basic Education degrees filled 96.9% of their places with 1,302 admitted candidates, while Medicine placements rose to 1,663 across the country. In contrast, 39 study programs registered zero placements, and 93 programs admitted between one and five students.

University leadership response and next stages

Addressing the empty degree courses, Council of Rectors president Luís Ferreira pointed to subjects such as mining, forestry, and agricultural engineering that face low student enrollment despite labor market needs.

Now, it is good that we are aware that there are courses that are necessary, which at this moment do not have supply, and that what we all must do, first and foremost higher education institutions, is to promote these courses well and show that they are important.

Ferreira stated that universities cannot cease offering such programs and must maintain a long-term vision rather than merely reacting to immediate student demand. Official individual placement results will be published on Sunday, 23 August, giving successful candidates until 27 August to complete registration and enrolment. The second application phase will run from 24 August to 20 September with 6,639 places available (a 42.3% decrease compared to 2025), with results scheduled for 30 September.