27.07.2026 11:51
Prof. Dr. Erol Özvar, President of the Council of Higher Education (YÖK), stated that they are planning higher education quotas in line with Türkiye's development goals, labor market needs, digital transformation, and the demands of strategic sectors. While there was a 48% increase in information technologies and a 1520% increase in cybersecurity, limited increases were made in medicine and agriculture.
In his written statement, Özvar stated that while making significant capacity increases in fields related to future professions, they have adopted a balanced planning approach in areas where graduate supply is high.
QUOTA WILL BE DETERMINED AS FOLLOWS
YÖK President Özvar, noting that a multi-dimensional analysis is carried out when determining university quotas, emphasized that academic capacity, research infrastructure, and graduate employment opportunities are evaluated together.
Stating that they have also included the business world in the process, Özvar expressed that they have gathered opinions from ministries, professional organizations, chambers of industry and commerce, and sector representatives. Emphasizing that they avoid populist approaches, Özvar said, "We make our decisions not based on temporary trends, but with a data-driven and long-term understanding."
OSB-VOCATIONAL SCHOOL QUOTAS INCREASED BY 41 PERCENT
YÖK President Özvar announced that the first concrete results of the new quota planning in universities are seen in the fields of informatics and technology. Özvar stated that, to meet the market's need for qualified intermediate staff and technical personnel, quotas for associate degree programs in information technologies have been increased by approximately 48 percent, and quotas for Vocational Schools in Organized Industrial Zones (OSB-MYO) have been increased by approximately 41 percent.
REMARKABLE INCREASE IN CYBERSECURITY
Drawing attention to the fact that the most striking increase has occurred in the field of cybersecurity, Özvar emphasized that the educational capacity in this area has grown approximately 16-fold, an increase of 1520 percent.
"COMPUTER AND INFORMATION SCIENCES INCREASED BY APPROXIMATELY 31 PERCENT IN THE LAST 3 YEARS"
Noting that they are carrying out similar planning in undergraduate programs according to future needs, Özvar stated that quotas in the field of computer and information sciences have been increased by approximately 31 percent in the last three years, and this increase stems from the growing need for human resources in the fields of software, artificial intelligence, data science, and digital technologies.
INCREASE IN SPORTS SCIENCES AND FINE ARTS
Özvar reported that quotas for programs admitting students through special talent exams have been increased by 11 percent, quotas for sports sciences faculties by 34 percent, and quotas for art and design faculties by approximately 16 percent over the last four years.
"BALANCED INCREASE IN MEDICINE AND AGRICULTURE"
Stating that they have adopted a balanced planning in strategic fields, Özvar noted that they have implemented a limited increase of approximately 2.8 percent in medical school quotas and 1.6 percent in agriculture, farming, and livestock fields.
"WE WILL PREPARE PROFESSIONS IN THE FIELDS TURKEY NEEDS"
Emphasizing that the primary goal of quota planning is not merely to place students in universities, Özvar stated that while directing higher education capacity to fields needed by Turkey, they aim to prepare young people for the professions of the future. Özvar stressed that through the planning carried out in higher education, they aim to strengthen the balance between graduate supply and employment, and to increase qualified human resources in informatics, cybersecurity, digital technologies, and production-oriented fields.