# Portugal national exam digital grading issues

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/portugal-national-exam-digital-grading-issues
> Updated: 2026-09-29T23:09:01.000Z. Sources: 6. Developments: 3.

The National Jury of Exams (JNE) in Portugal has addressed technical and operational failures encountered during the transition to digital grading for national secondary school exams.

During parliamentary testimony, JNE President Rui Pires explained that a 2025 pilot program identified difficulties with manual interventions required to associate exam sheets, though it failed to detect specific QR code reading issues that later impacted the 2026 process. Pires noted that while pilot conclusions were not formally documented, they were used to attempt improvements in validation and traceability.

Following the first year of full digital grading, which faced technical vulnerabilities and delays in releasing student grades, the JNE submitted a report to the Assembly of the Republic. To prepare for the 2026/2027 academic year, the JNE proposed five areas for improvement: technical platform robustness, system integration, communication with schools and families, participant training, and the creation of a contracted pool of teachers to ensure a stable workforce of graders.

A subsequent report by Deloitte identified specific administrative failures, including poor printing quality that hindered QR code readability. This issue necessitated manual corrections, thereby increasing the risk of human error. The consultancy also highlighted problems within the Classification and Supervision Platform, particularly regarding the grading of multiple-choice questions.

## Timeline

### 2026-09-29: Júri Nacional de Exames proposes contracted pool for exam graders

Portugal's National Jury of Exams proposes a contracted pool of teachers for grading national exams following technical issues during the first year of digital grading.

2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/jri-nacional-de-exames-proposes-contracted-pool-for-exam-graders

### 2026-09-29: Portugal national exams face technical failures amid university admissions

Deloitte identified technical failures in Portugal's national exams, including QR code and grading errors, amid news that 9,116 students were placed in the second phase of higher education admissions.

4 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/portugal-national-exams-face-technical-failures-amid-university-admissions

### 2026-09-22: JNE President testifies on digital exam grading pilot failures

The president of Portugal's National Jury of Exams testified that a 2025 pilot project identified manual errors in exam grading but failed to detect QR code reading issues that impacted 2026 processes.

2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/jne-president-testifies-on-digital-exam-grading-pilot-failures

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Cite as: Portugal national exam digital grading issues. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/portugal-national-exam-digital-grading-issues