Türkiye limits university admissions to boost quality in fields

ANKARA

Türkiye’s higher education authority has introduced significant cuts to university admissions and raised entry standards for competitive programs such as law, in a broader effort to improve academic quality.

According to the preliminary guide released ahead of the university preference period, the minimum ranking required to enter law programs has been raised from the top 125,000 to the top 100,000 candidates.

Additionally, total higher education capacity have decreased by 18 percent compared to last year, falling from 1.02 million seats in 2024 to 837,884 this year.

Public universities have seen the largest cuts. Their combined undergraduate and associate degree capacity dropped from 811,000 to 620,000 seats.

Law, dentistry, nursing and engineering departments at public universities experienced some of the largest reductions in capacity.

In contrast, foundation universities increased their capacity slightly.

Education expert Salim Ünsal said this year's sharp cuts would force many students to reconsider their expectations.

“Dreams have shifted from the top-choice programs to the second tier,” he noted. “A student who once aimed for Ankara University’s law school may now set their sights on Hacı Bayram Veli University instead. A candidate targeting dentistry at Hacettepe or Cerrahpaşa might now consider schools in other cities. Students will need to scale back their ambitions slightly.”

Admission to universities in Türkiye is based a centrally administered university entrance exam.

After results are released, candidates participate in a placement process where they submit a ranked list of program preferences. University admission is determined by national exam ranking and the availability of seats in each program.

This year, the preference period runs from Aug. 1 to 13.