Portugal's Public Universities End Their Access Contest With 52,008 Students, While Bragança's Polytechnic Is Left With More Than Half Its Places Empty

Portugal's public universities and polytechnics have admitted 52,008 students through this year's national access contest, after a third and final round that placed 1,168 more. That fills 92.5 percent of the 56,228 places offered in July. The gap between the two halves of the system is wide: universities filled 97.2 percent of their places, polytechnics 86.2 percent.

The figures come from the official note that the Instituto para o Ensino Superior (Institute for Higher Education, IES), formerly the Directorate-General for Higher Education, published on dges.gov.pt at one minute past midnight on Sunday 18 October, with the course-by-course results. Students placed in this round must enrol and register at their institution between 18 and 20 October.

Who was placed in the last round

There were 4,524 valid applications for the third phase, and 46 more were excluded because the applicants did not meet the conditions. The note breaks the valid ones down:

• 250 had not applied in an earlier phase;
• 2,047 had applied before and not been placed;
• 501 had been placed earlier but did not enrol;
• 1,726 were already enrolled and were trying for a course they preferred.

Of the 1,168 students newly placed, 690 went to polytechnics and 478 to universities. The course-by-course results record 1,813 placements in all; the difference is mostly students who were already enrolled and moved course.

Institutions had put 3,256 places into this round, as we reported when it opened on 10 October. Another 638 were freed by enrolled students who moved, one was added to settle a tie and 21 were created for candidates without a final grade. When the results were in, 2,103 places were still empty.

Where the places are still empty

This was the contest's last phase, so those places will not be filled through it. The pattern is the one seen after the second phase on 30 September: the shortfall sits mainly in polytechnics away from Lisbon, Porto and Coimbra.

The Instituto Politécnico de Bragança (Bragança Polytechnic Institute) ends the contest with 954 students for 1,937 places, an occupancy of 49.3 percent, the lowest in the country. It is followed by the polytechnics of Tomar (63.7 percent), Guarda (64.3 percent), Beja (66.5 percent) and Castelo Branco (69.5 percent).

At the other end, the University of Porto filled 99.4 percent of its places, the University of Lisbon 99.3 percent and ISCTE, the university institute in Lisbon, 99.8 percent. The Polytechnic Institute of Porto reached 99.3 percent. The Estoril hotel and tourism school admitted 438 students for 429 places (102.1 percent of its places).

In the third phase alone, 125 courses offered places and placed nobody. Some of the larger offers went almost unanswered:

• agronomy at Santarém's agricultural school placed one student for 48 places;
• computer engineering at the Coimbra polytechnic's school in Oliveira do Hospital placed three for 30;
• computer engineering at Tomar placed two for 25;
• computer engineering at Guarda and at Castelo Branco placed nobody.

At the top end, the highest grade needed in this round was 187.2 out of 200, for medicine at the University of Coimbra, which had two places to fill. Most other medical schools offered none.

Which subjects filled, and which did not

By field of study, the note shows the same split as earlier rounds. Agriculture, forestry and fisheries filled 48.8 percent of its 713 places. Manufacturing courses filled 60.2 percent, environmental protection 79.1 percent and the physical sciences 81.0 percent. Engineering and related techniques, the largest field with 10,548 places, finished at 87.2 percent, and computing at 85.5 percent.

Humanities filled all its places and slightly more (100.5 percent). Social and behavioural sciences reached 98.9 percent, law 98.6 percent and health 96.7 percent, with 7,332 students admitted to health courses.

How this year compares

The IES notes for the first two phases already pointed to a bigger intake. The first phase placed 49,991 students in August, 6,092 more than in 2025 (up 13.9 percent), and the second placed 9,116, up 292. The third-phase note does not give a comparison with last year's final total.

What students placed now need to do

Anyone placed in this round has three days, from 18 to 20 October, to enrol and register with the institution, the note says. The contest rules, set by Portaria n.º 219/2026/1 (Ordinance 219/2026/1), mean that a student already enrolled who is placed in a different course has the earlier placement cancelled automatically, and the first institution passes on the student's file and any fees paid.

Our guide to applying to a public university in Portugal explains how the national contest works, and our guide to applying for a university grant explains how to ask for help with fees and living costs.

Source: Instituto para o Ensino Superior, "Acesso ao Ensino Superior 2026: Resultados da 3.ª fase do Concurso Nacional de Acesso" (note, tables I to IV) and the third-phase list of the grades of the last students placed, both published on 18 October 2026 at dges.gov.pt/coloc/2026. The first- and second-phase comparisons are from the IES second-phase note of 30 September.