ENEM in Brazil

The High School National Exam or ENEM (In Portuguese: Exame Nacional do Ensino Medio) was initiated in 1998. In 2009, the ENEM exam had undergone a transformation. The ENEM is a non-compulsory, standardized Brazilian national exam, managed and operated by the Ministry of Education’s National Institute for Educational Studies and Research (INEP). It tests the level of knowledge of the high school students in Brazil. 

The ENEM exam comprises of 180 multiple-choice questions and tests students in five main areas, namely natural sciences, math, human sciences, Portuguese and either English or Spanish as a foreign language. Students are also required to write an essay.

The ENEM is used as an admission exam for enrollment in many Universities in Brazil, as well as for a high school degree certification. The examination is likewise used by individuals wanting to earn points in 'the University for All Programme', or ProUni, a federal scholarship programme (Programa Universidade para Todos).

High School graduates wanting to study at a University in Brazil are eligible for ENEM. Generally anybody can sit for ENEM exam to test their skills and knowledge. 

The ENEM exam comprises of 4 objective tests, each containing 45 multiple choice questions and an essay. In total, there are 180 multiple-choice questions which are evenly split into 4 knowledge areas- languages, codes and related technologies along with a written essay, human sciences and related technologies, mathematics and its technologies, and natural sciences and related technologies,. 

The ENEM takes place in 2 days- Saturday and Sunday

Areas of knowledge:  Humanities/human sciences and its technologies and natural sciences and their technologies 

Total Items: Both tests comprise of 90 issues (45 questions in each area of knowledge)

Duration: 4 hours and 30 minutes

Areas of Knowledge: Languages, Codes and their Technologies and Mathematics, Code and their technologies

Total Questions: 90 questions (45 questions in each area of knowledge)

Compulsory Item: One Essay 

Duration: 5 hours and 30 minutes 

Since 2009, the ENEM is used by higher education institutions for student enrollment in undergraduate programmes.  

You can register for ENEM exam through the INEP website. Fill out all the required personal information.  

Once you’re registered successfully, a confirmation card is sent by post to the address provided by you during registration.

Confirmation Card- The confirmation card includes the applicant’s registration number, date, time, examination centre, foreign language choice (Spanish or English), and the certification request (if any).

You can also get your confirmation card through the INEP website.

The registration fees vary so check the official website. Also, exemptions in the fees are given.  After you pay the required fees, proof of registration will be available on the INEP site.

If the applicant wants to get special accommodation, in that case, he/she should mention about it at the time of registration itself under the option 'Request for Specialized care' with appropriate documentation. 

The exam is corrected by two experts independently. Each expert assigns a score between 0 to 200 points for each of the five areas of knowledge, thereby contributing to a total of 1,000 points. 

The final grade corresponds to the simple arithmetic average of the scores given by the two experts. If there is a difference of 100 or more points between the two surface grades on a scale from 0 to 1000 or if the divergence is greater than 80 points on a scale of 0 to 200 , in that case, the essay will pass through a third correction.