🇱🇰 20 state institutions · 260 courses
Sri Lanka's state universities, and the Z-score each course needs.
The University Grants Commission admits to every state university course on the A-level Z-score, with a separate cut-off for each district. Here is every course's 2025/26 range, with the UGC's enrolment figures — and the private institutes the Ministry lets award degrees.
Undergraduates, 2024
148,027
at 20 state universities and institutes.
Courses with a 2025/26 cut-off
260
each with a cut-off for all 25 districts.
Non-state degree-awarding institutes
22
recognised by the Ministry of Higher Education.
Undergraduates on the UGC's own count, excluding students carried over from earlier years (the backlog). The Open University of Sri Lanka is counted separately and isn't included.
State universities and institutes (20)
| Institution | Undergraduates 2024 | Courses |
|---|---|---|
| University of Sri JayewardenepuraNugegoda | 16,661 | 33 |
| University of KelaniyaKelaniya | 15,549 | 26 |
| University of RuhunaMatara | 14,241 | 20 |
| University of ColomboColombo | 14,240 | 19 |
| University of PeradeniyaPeradeniya | 13,127 | 21 |
| University of JaffnaJaffna | 12,186 | 21 |
| University of MoratuwaMoratuwa | 9,232 | 16 |
| Sabaragamuwa University of Sri LankaBelihuloya | 8,415 | 21 |
| Eastern University, Sri LankaVantharumoolai | 7,837 | 17 |
| Rajarata University of Sri LankaMihintale | 7,707 | 12 |
| South Eastern University of Sri LankaOluvil | 6,666 | 11 |
| Wayamba University of Sri LankaKuliyapitiya | 6,466 | 8 |
| Uva Wellassa UniversityBadulla | 5,465 | 16 |
| University of VavuniyaVavuniya | 2,922 | 8 |
| University of the Visual and Performing ArtsColombo | 2,880 | 4 |
| Gampaha Wickramarachchi University of Indigenous MedicineYakkala | 1,536 | 1 |
| Swamy Vipulananda Institute of Aesthetic StudiesBatticaloa | 1,327 | 4 |
| University of Colombo School of ComputingColombo | 1,092 | 2 |
| Institute of Indigenous MedicineRajagiriya | 1,089 | — |
| Institute of Human Resource AdvancementColombo | 478 | — |
The Open University of Sri Lanka, also a state university, admits on its own criteria rather than the Z-score and is counted separately by the UGC.
Medicine: the 2025/26 cut-off at each university
State universities admit on the A-level Z-score, which places a candidate against everyone who sat the same subjects that year. Each course has a cut-off for every one of Sri Lanka's 25 districts, because places are shared out between districts — so the same course can need a very different score in Colombo and in a rural district. Shown: the lowest and highest district cut-off, and Colombo's. Z-scores compare courses within a year and a subject stream, not across them.
| University | Colombo district | Lowest district | Highest district |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Colombo | 2.2721 | 2.2624 | 2.4753 |
| University of Peradeniya | 2.0762 | 2.0762 | 2.2288 |
| University of Sri Jayewardenepura | 2.0605 | 2.0602 | 2.0972 |
| University of Kelaniya | 2.0038 | 2.0017 | 2.0535 |
| University of Ruhuna | 1.9520 | 1.9509 | 1.9893 |
| University of Moratuwa | 1.9290 | 1.9279 | 1.9819 |
| Eastern University, Sri Lanka | 1.9143 | 1.4584 | 1.9151 |
| University of Jaffna | 1.8896 | 1.6924 | 1.8897 |
| Wayamba University of Sri Lanka | 1.8873 | 1.7898 | 1.8965 |
| Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka | 1.8841 | 1.7883 | 1.8992 |
| Rajarata University of Sri Lanka | 1.8831 | 1.8742 | 1.8988 |
| Uva Wellassa University | — | 1.5563 | 1.8703 |
Non-state degree-awarding institutes (22)
Private and other non-state institutes the Ministry of Higher Education recognises to award their own degrees, with the number of degree programmes listed for each. They admit and charge on their own terms, outside the Z-score system.
- Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (SLIIT)49 degrees
- National School of Business Management (NSBM)42 degrees
- CINEC Campus39 degrees
- Royal Institute Campus34 degrees
- Sri Lanka Technology Campus31 degrees
- KIU Campus20 degrees
- Horizon College of Business and Technology16 degrees
- Saegis Campus12 degrees
- Benedict XVI Catholic Institute of Higher Education11 degrees
- Nagananda International Institute for Buddhist Studies10 degrees
- Sri Lanka International Buddhist Academy7 degrees
- Aquinas College of Higher Studies6 degrees
- The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka6 degrees
- SANASA Campus4 degrees
- Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration3 degrees
- ESOFT Uni3 degrees
- International College of Business and Technology3 degrees
- National Institute of Social Development2 degrees
- Sri Lanka Institute of Nanotechnology2 degrees
- Institute of Surveying and Mapping1 degree
- Institute of Chemistry Ceylon1 degree
- Institute of Technological Studies1 degree
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Sources: University Grants Commission, Sri Lanka — “Sri Lanka University Statistics 2024” (Table 3.2) and the 2025/26 minimum Z-score cut-offs; Ministry of Higher Education — list of degree-awarding institutes. Figures re-keyed and summarised by CollegeMatcher.