The latest results from the National Competition for Access to Higher Education (CNAES) have been released by the Directorate-General for Higher Education (DGES), showing that universities and polytechnic institutes now have 45,290 new students, reflecting a 10% decrease from the previous year’s 50,612 candidates.
Speculation about a decline in the number of students entering higher education began when it was revealed there were fewer candidates in the first phase of the CNAES. This theory was supported by the first placement results, which showed only 44,000 students secured a spot, marking a 12% decrease from the prior year and the lowest number since 2016.
Placements consistently remained below previous years, and this third and final opportunity to enter higher education through the CNAES was no exception: only 801 students were placed, less than half of last year’s number.
Of the 801 new students, 471 secured places at a university, while the remaining 330 enrolled in polytechnic institutions, according to results available on the DGES website.
University rectors, polytechnic presidents, and student associations have cited various reasons for the decrease in student numbers, including the high cost of accommodation, the economic difficulties faced by families unable to support a child studying away from home, and the requirement to pass national exams to complete secondary education.
The issue does not appear to be related to the number of available spots offered by higher education institutions. In this third phase alone, 3,046 students applied for the 6,710 available spots. Across all three phases, 55,292 spots were offered, with 45,290 students placed.
The majority of new students were placed in the university subsystem, which now accounts for approximately 29,000 newcomers, achieving an occupancy rate of 92.8%.
Once again this year, polytechnic institutes had more vacancies remain unfilled, with an occupancy rate of 67.7% following the admission of 16,271 new students.
The polytechnic institutes of Tomar, Bragança, Guarda, and Beja recorded the lowest occupancy rates at under 40%, in contrast to the universities of Coimbra, Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Porto, ISCTE—University Institute of Lisbon, and the School of Nursing in Lisbon, which filled more than 95% of their available slots.
For newly placed students, enrollment is conducted from October 1 to 3 at their respective higher education institutions.
