Expansion of ÖSYM Electronic Exams to All Turkish Universities

Goal for Nationwide Coverage in 209 Universities Bayram Ali Ersoy, President of the Student Selection and Placement Center (ÖSYM) in Turkey, announced the organization's new roadmap for fully digitizing assessment processes during a visit to the "Esenboğa" e-Exam Center in Ankara. He stated that the ultimate goal is to equip all 208 to 209 Turkish universities with the necessary infrastructure for electronic exams (e-Sınav). Under this plan, candidates in all 81 provinces of Turkey will be able to participate in national and specialized exams online without the need for long journeys to major cities [1][4].

Esenboğa Center: Driver of Digital Transformation in the Region Referring to the 5,000-person capacity of the Esenboğa center, Ersoy called it the largest indoor electronic exam center in the world. Currently, these centers are active only in four major cities: Ankara, Istanbul, Izmir, and Adana. However, with the implementation of the new plan, the capacity for online exams in Turkey's 7 geographical regions will be completed within one to two years. This move not only reduces logistical and paper printing costs but also significantly increases the speed of result announcements and strengthens educational equity [2][3].

Diversity of Exams and New International Standards ÖSYM, which previously conducted mainly language exams (e-YDS and e-YÖKDİL) electronically, is now expanding its scope to specialized fields such as Pharmacy (EUS), the Court of Accounts, and the Ministry of Agriculture exams. Ersoy also announced the introduction of new exams such as e-TEP (English Proficiency) and e-YDTS (Turkish for Foreigners), designed according to European standards (CEFR). Additionally, a new Arabic exam based on four core skills (reading, writing, listening, and speaking) will be implemented by late June or early July 2026 [1][3].

Successful Pilot and Cybersecurity Priority The President of ÖSYM confirmed that the pilot implementation of this system at Gazi University was successful. He emphasized that the top priority in expanding this network is ensuring cybersecurity and preventing any cheating using advanced monitoring technologies and biometric systems. The organization's ultimate goal is to create a standardized and secure assessment platform that is recognized as a model not only nationally but also internationally, enabling Turkish exams to be held worldwide [2][4].