Galicia reforms university entrance exam with new PAU framework

The Galician government (Xunta de Galicia) and the three public universities have signed an agreement to overhaul the Proba de Acceso á Universidade (PAU). The reform responds to errors in the June 2024 exams and aims to provide greater security, equality and transparency.

A new organisational structure will involve up to four secondary‑school teachers and two university professors in each working group, with a university teacher leading the exam design and grading guidelines. An organising commission, comprising representatives of the Xunta, the universities and an external secretariat, will set general criteria, create question banks and supervise peer review. A technical commission will handle logistics, venues, security and accommodations for students with special needs.

Changes will be rolled out gradually, with some measures applied to the next calling of the exam and further adjustments scheduled for later years, seeking to better align the tests with the secondary curriculum and improve oversight of the exam process.