The authors of the appeal explain the need to revise the requirements by the difficult conditions under which graduates took the NMT. Rectors propose to lower the admission threshold for certain specialties.
The Union of Rectors of Higher Education Institutions of Ukraine has appealed to the Ministry of Education and Science with a proposal to lower the minimum competitive score for admission to a number of specialties, in particular law, international relations, medicine, dentistry, and pediatrics.
The relevant appeal has been sent to the Minister of Education and Science Oksen Lisovyi.
The appeal concerns amendments to the Procedure for admission to education for higher education in 2026.
In particular, the Union of Rectors proposes to reduce the minimum competitive score from 150 to 130 for admission to specialties C3 “International Relations”, D4 “Public Administration and Management”, D8 “Law”, D9 “International Law”, I1 “Dentistry”, I2 “Medicine”, I3 “Pediatrics”, I4 “Medical Psychology”.
The proposal also applies to the specialization C1.02 “International Economic Relations” of the specialty C1 “Economics and International Economic Relations”.
For the specialty I8 “Pharmacy”, the Union of Rectors proposes to set the minimum competitive score at 140.
The authors of the appeal explain the need to revise the current requirements by the difficult conditions under which graduates took the NMT in 2026.
The Union of Rectors notes that a significant part of the tests took place under conditions of air raids, missile attacks, power outages, and after prolonged distance learning.
The appeal emphasizes that low NMT results may be due to not only the applicants’ preparation level but also high psychological stress, pressure, and instability of the educational process in the context of a full-scale war.
Representatives of the Union of Rectors also draw attention to the risk of increased outflow of Ukrainian applicants abroad due to the maintenance of a high threshold score.
In their opinion, the proposed changes can contribute to preserving the potential of Ukrainian higher education and allow more graduates of 2026 to continue their studies in Ukraine.
The Chairman of the Union of Rectors of Higher Education Institutions of Ukraine, Petro Kulikov, expressed hope for constructive dialogue with the Ministry of Education and Science and for the consideration of the proposed changes during the final approval of the admission campaign conditions for 2026.