At least 1,200 funded university places will be cut in Scotland, the finance secretary has confirmed.
Shona Robison said the government could not afford to continue financing additional places created during the pandemic.
She told MSPs that no decision has yet been made on further reductions after the government announced a £28.5m reduction in university funding.
The Conservatives said it was a "hammer blow" to universities and students.
During her budget statement in December, Ms Robison told MSPs she was "protecting free tuition and driving forward our commitment to widening access".
Ministers have also frequently pointed to free tuition in Scotland as a justification for higher taxes on higher earners when compared to other parts of the UK.
However, documents published alongside the draft Scottish Budget in December included a 6% funding cut for higher education "to support delivery of core teaching activities".
It said additional savings are "to be made in the [higher education] sector including from reducing first year university places".
Ms Robison told Holyrood's finance committee that it was no longer "sustainable" to fund an additional 1,200 first-year university places that were created during the pandemic due to a "big spike" in the number of pupils meeting admission thresholds after exams were disrupted.
She said ministers had used UK government Covid funding to finance those places and kept them open for two years.
The government will spend £2bn on higher and further education under its 2024-25 budget plans, she added.
