Overview
Maiores de 23 is the route into Portuguese higher education for adults aged 23 or over who do not hold a standard qualification for access. Candidates sit special assessments run by the higher education institution (IES) they want to join, and then apply through a special competition. The assessments are regulated by Decree-Law 64/2006, as amended by Decree-Law 113/2014. They are held every year and lead to a licenciatura or integrated master's course.
Who can apply
To enter the special competition you must meet all of these conditions:
be over 23 years old
not hold the qualification that gives access to higher education
have passed the specially adapted assessments at a higher education institution
meet any prerequisites set for the institution and course, where they exist
not be covered by the international student status
The law sets no upper age limit for the assessments. The minimum is that you must have completed 23 years by 31 December of the year before the assessments. For example, someone who turns 23 on 26 November 2023 can register for the 2024 assessments, while someone who turns 23 on 10 January 2024 can only register for those in 2025. Having some university study or a degree does not by itself bar you, though you should check the institution's own rules.
Exam pattern
Each IES writes its own assessment regulation, which sets registration deadlines, rules, marking criteria and the form of assessment for each course. The law requires every assessment to include these parts:
review of your academic and professional curriculum
an assessment of your motivation, which can be an interview
theoretical and/or practical tests of the knowledge and skills needed to enter and progress in the course
The tests must cover only areas directly relevant to the course. Because the content and weights differ by institution and course, read the regulation of the institution you want. DGES lists links to these regulations, but its list was marked as being updated when checked.
Marking and results
Passing the assessments counts for the institution and course for which you took them. An institution's rules can allow the result to be used for other courses of the same institution, and an institution may accept candidates who passed at another one. The result is valid in the year it is taken and for the period set in the institution's regulation. It does not give any equivalence to school qualifications.
Important dates
Each IES sets its own deadlines for registration, the assessments and the special competition, and publishes them on its website. DGES does not set one national calendar for this route.
How to apply
Register for the assessments with the institution you want, within the deadlines it sets.
Complete the assessments (curriculum review, interview and tests).
Apply to the special competition at the institution, with the documents its regulation asks for. You can apply to the course you passed for, to other courses at that institution if its rules allow, and to other institutions that accept such candidates.
The institution also sets vacancies, ranking criteria and tie-breaks for the special competition. The route covers public and private institutions, except military and police higher education.
After the exam
If a course has a prerequisite (for physical, functional or vocational aptitude), you must also complete it. The deadlines for prerequisites are set each year by the national access commission, CNAES.
Does passing give me a secondary school certificate?
No. The result only counts for the special competition. It gives no equivalence to school qualifications.
Is there a maximum age?
No. The law sets a minimum age only: 23 years completed by 31 December of the year before the assessments.