YOS Foreign Student Exam (Turkey)YÖS

Overview

TR-YÖS (Türkiye Yurt Dışından Öğrenci Kabul Sınavı) is the exam for students from abroad who want to study at higher-education institutions in Turkey. It is run by ÖSYM, Turkey's measuring, selection and placement centre. This page is based on the 2026 TR-YÖS/2 guide.

TR-YÖS is a test that students can use when they apply to Turkish higher-education institutions. ÖSYM does not handle placement, registration at universities, housing, scholarships or residence permits; those are dealt with by the universities and other bodies.

How universities use it

According to the guide, state universities that admit students from abroad have, since the 2024-2025 academic year, taken into account TR-YÖS together with the secondary-school grade average set by each university senate, national exams of the student's own country and international exam results. Foundation (vakıf) universities consider the criteria set by their senates and also the results of their own entrance exams for students from abroad.

Each university publishes the methods it accepts and the minimum scores on its own website. Students can apply directly to a university with TR-YÖS, Abitur, SAT, IB or other results that the university and the Council of Higher Education accept.

TR-YÖS results are valid for 2 years from the exam date.

Who can apply

Applicants must be in their final year of high school or already have graduated. The guide lists these groups:

• Foreign nationals, as long as they did not study at or graduate from a high school in Turkey. There are exceptions for people who completed all of high school at embassy schools or at international private schools in the ministry's system, and for people brought to Turkey under Ministry of National Education or Council of Higher Education projects.

• People born as Turkish citizens who lost citizenship with permission from the Interior Ministry (Blue Card holders), if they did not study in high schools in Turkey or Northern Cyprus.

• People who gained Turkish citizenship later, having been foreign nationals before, and dual nationals in that position, with the same condition about high school.

• Turkish citizens who completed all of high school abroad, outside Northern Cyprus, including those who finished at Turkish schools abroad opened under the Ministry of National Education.

• Citizens of Northern Cyprus who did not study in Turkish high schools or in Northern Cyprus schools that follow the Turkish curriculum, and who meet the criteria of the universities.

From 2026, the Council of Higher Education decided that foreign nationals, Blue Card holders and Northern Cyprus citizens who registered in or graduated from high schools in Turkey or Northern Cyprus can enter universities there only through the YKS exam, not through TR-YÖS.

Exam pattern

The 2026 TR-YÖS/2 exam is multiple choice, with five options per question, and has two tests.

The exam is offered in Turkish, German, English, French, Russian and Arabic. The answering time is 100 minutes. In most centres the exam starts at 11:15 Turkish time, and candidates are not admitted after 11:00. Some countries have different local start times (for example 09:15 in the United States and 17:15 in Australia).

Marking and results

Marks for each test are the number of correct answers minus a quarter of the number of wrong answers. The raw marks are changed to standard scores with a mean of 50 and a standard deviation of 10. The Numerical Ability score is weighted 0.45 and the Basic Mathematics score 0.55. A candidate needs a raw mark of at least 0.5 in at least one of the tests to get a weighted score. The weighted scores are then converted to a TR-YÖS score between 100 and 500.

Results are published on the ÖSYM results site. No result document is posted to candidates.

Important dates

Fees

For TR-YÖS/2 in 2026, the exam fee depends on the country where the candidate takes the test:

• 3,700 TL in Turkey, Northern Cyprus, Germany, the United States, Australia, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Russia and several other countries listed in the guide.

• 1,650 TL in Algeria, Indonesia, Morocco, Georgia, India, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan and several other countries listed in the guide.

• 1,150 TL in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Sri Lanka and several other countries listed in the guide.

Payment is by credit or debit card on the ÖSYM payment page. Payments from abroad in USD or euro are converted at the central bank rate. Fees are not refunded.

How to apply

Candidates apply on the TR-YÖS candidate system at tryos.osym.gov.tr. Candidates with a photo Turkish ID card use e-Devlet. Other candidates register for a TR-YÖS number, enter their details, and use the TR-YÖS mobile app to take a photo and photograph their ID document if no valid photo is on file. The application is complete only after the fee is paid on time. The exam entry document is available on the ÖSYM site in the week of the exam, and candidates bring it with a photo ID or valid passport.

Preparation tips

• Practise both test types: numerical-ability questions and basic mathematics questions, under timed conditions.

• Check each target university's website for the exams and minimum scores it accepts, since TR-YÖS is only one of the options.

• Arrive early. The guide asks candidates to be at the exam building at least one hour before the start.