The public organization “Union of Rectors of Higher Education Institutions of Ukraine” has appealed to the Ministry of Education and Science to reconsider the minimum admission score for a number of majors in 2026.
According to the appeal to Minister of Education and Science Oksen Lisovyi, the Union of Rectors proposes lowering the minimum admission score from 150 to 130 for admission to the majors “International Relations,” “Public Management and Administration,” “Law,” “International Law,” “Dentistry,” “Medicine,” “Pediatrics,” “Medical Psychology,” as well as for the specialization “International Economic Relations” within the major “Economics and International Economic Relations.”
For the “Pharmacy” major, the organization proposes setting the minimum admission score at 140.
The Union of Rectors explains the need to revise the requirements by citing the difficult conditions under which graduates took the national multi-subject test in 2026. A significant portion of the testing took place amid air raid alerts, rocket attacks, power outages, and the effects of prolonged distance learning.
The statement notes that low NMT scores are often linked not only to the level of preparation among applicants but also to high psychological strain, stress, and the instability of the educational process amid a full-scale war.
Representatives of the Union of Rectors also point to the risk of an increased exodus of Ukrainian applicants abroad if high cutoff scores are maintained for certain majors. According to the organization, the proposed changes will allow a greater number of 2026 graduates to continue their studies in Ukraine and will help preserve the potential of the Ukrainian higher education system.
As previously reported, the issue of the minimum admission score has also been raised in the context of the labor shortage in the pharmaceutical industry. Participants in the roundtable discussion “Labor Shortage in the Pharmaceutical Industry: Challenges, Regulatory Solutions, and the Role of Public Policy,” organized by the Ukrainian Pharmacists Association, noted that requiring applicants to pharmaceutical programs to score more than 150 points could exacerbate the labor shortage in the industry.
The public organization “Union of Rectors of Higher Education Institutions of Ukraine” is a professional association of Ukrainian university leaders. The organization serves as a platform for coordinating the positions of higher education institutions and discussing issues related to educational policy, legislation, funding, educational quality, and international cooperation. The organization is headed by Petro Kulikov. He previously served as president of the Kyiv National University of Construction and Architecture and participates in public discussions on reforms in higher education.
Ministry of Education and Science, Union of Rectors of Ukraine
