Portugal national exam results release hit by severe delays, technical failures

Students from a school in Lisbon left with mixed emotions following the release of national exam results overnight—some celebrating strong performances, while others departed feeling distressed and uncertain after their grades were not yet available.

Frustration Over Missing Grades

"I feel terrible. I really have no information at all," said 18-year-old Marta Jesus, a 12th-grade Science and Technology student, expressing frustration that she still does not have her Portuguese exam grade to begin the university application process.

At José Gomes Ferreira Secondary School, in the Benfica parish, more than 30 pending grades were recorded. These students' exams were not classified and will require reassessment, though no date has been set for when they will receive their scores.

Relief and Surprise for Others

The school, which serves 1,200 students from 9th grade through secondary education, also saw students who were delighted by their results.

"In my case, it was much better than I expected," said 18-year-old Joana Domingues, a 12th-grade student, still surprised and relieved by the grades she saw.

Long Wait and Growing Crowds

Some students had been waiting since 3:00 PM to see their grades, which only arrived at 9:00 PM. They waited with friends, hoping the results would meet their expectations.

An initial group of about 20 people, including students and parents, grew to over three dozen amid complaints about the delay in releasing the exam results.

When students began to see their grades, shouts and complaints were heard from those who felt the exams were poorly graded, though celebrations were also audible.

Some students went with friends to check their grades, saying that if they were going to suffer over the results, they would "suffer together."

Technical Issues with Digital Grading

For the first time this year, the national secondary school exams—taken by 166,000 students—were graded in digital format. However, the process experienced technical failures from the start, forcing the Ministry of Education to postpone the initially planned deadlines.

Today was the scheduled day for posting the national secondary school exam results, but only late in the afternoon, at 7:30 PM, did the National Exam Board send the graded exams to schools. Some schools have already informed parents that the results will not be released today.