Mobile phone detectors will not be in all PAU classrooms, but invigilators will be able to request them in case of suspicion

BarcelonaUnlike last year, in this year's university entrance exams (PAU) there will be no major changes either in the format of the exams or in the correction criteria. The exams on June 9, 10, and 11 will be marked by an unprecedented context, both due to the Pope's visit and the open conflict between teachers and administration which, according to the Government, will not affect the selectivity. Also because it will be the first edition in which mobile phone detectors and electronic devices will be used to prevent students from cheating. This Friday, more details have emerged on how these devices will be used, which can detect radio frequency signals from a mobile phone or any device with wifi or Bluetooth connection, such as a wireless microphone or a smartwatch. There will be them in all universities, but not in all classrooms. They will be randomly distributed and, in case of suspicion, the exam proctor may request that one be brought.

The devices will not be able to capture the content being transmitted, but they will be able to detect if there is any information being sent. Therefore, there will be signs in the classrooms warning of the prohibition of using the devices. In fact, before the exam, students will have to leave all their belongings on one side of the classroom, so it will be possible to detect if someone has a device on them, which would result in a 0 in that particular exam. Afterwards, a committee would study the case and could decide to suspend the student's entire selectivity. To control the time of the test, clocks will be projected in the classrooms.

The Minister of Research and Universities, Núria Montserrat, has insisted that this is a "pilot test" – even though the devices had already been tested in the selectivity for those over 25 years old – and that the objective is "for all students to have the same opportunities". The minister explained that there are already at least five autonomous communities that use these detectors: Galicia, Murcia, Aragon, the Valencian Community, and Andalusia. The department assures that no cases have ever been detected in the PAU, but they have been detected in other large exams such as the MIR or some competitive examination calls.

This year's exams will follow the same line as last year's in terms of content and exam models. There are also no changes in the correction criteria. In language subjects, spelling may deduct up to 2 points. In other subjects where students have to write, their writing may deduct up to 10% of the score for that specific question. For this reason, in addition to warning in the exam header about the spelling scoring criteria, this year a notice has been added next to the statement of each affected activity.

Regarding the impact that the coincidence of the exams with the Pope's visit to Catalonia may have, especially on students taking exams in Barcelona, Montserrat insisted that they are coordinated with the Department of the Interior and asked for calm. "There is no coincidence in any case between the Pope's major events and the entry or exit of students: they will either already be in the classrooms or will have already finished their exams," she assured. Despite the planned reinforcements in public transport, the minister asked students and the rest of the public to plan their journeys in advance on those days.

Selectivity hits the ceiling

This year's university entrance exams have once again reached a historic high of enrolled students, with 45,821. The increase is mainly due to students coming from higher vocational training cycles or free enrollment, who are retaking the PAU to improve their grades. In contrast, the number of students taking the exams after finishing high school has barely grown. In fact, the Secretary General of the Interuniversity Council of Catalonia (CIC), Xavier Martínez-Celorrio, has stated that for this profile of students, they have already reached "the demographic ceiling." "From next year, we will begin to notice the decline in birth rates, which will also reach the PAU," he anticipated.

Among the forecasts for the 2027 PAU, there is also an important change in dates. The second exam session, which until now was held in September and was known precisely by that month's name, will now be held in July. The minister Montserrat has argued that this "normalizes" Catalonia's situation compared to the rest of the State. "We were the last community to hold the second session in September, and this guarantees equity in access to university," she said, taking into account that students taking the PAU in Catalonia may wish to access universities throughout the country.

With this change, the extraordinary session of the exams will be held in early July, shortly after candidates from the first session receive their exam corrections at the end of June. However, the academic coordinator of the PAU, Rosa Pàmies, has pointed out that the majority of students taking the extraordinary session have not taken the first one, but rather are those who have not passed high school on their first attempt.

This year's exams will involve 264 secondary and university professors. The number of subjects remains at 35, with five exam models for each subject and up to three reviews of each exam model. The professors who correct the exams volunteer their services, and this year the remuneration has increased by up to 20%. Therefore, the minister dismisses the possibility that the conflict between teachers and Education may influence the PAU, which is organized by the Department of Research and Universities. In this year's PAU, 1,500 classrooms will also be used, and there will be 223 examination boards spread across 33 municipalities, including two that are new to the Vendrell and Vilassar de Mar.