Türkiye Scholarships 2026: Closed General Cycle, Funding, Eligibility, and Future Calendar

The Türkiye Scholarships 2026 general application cycle is closed. The official announcement gave international applicants one general application period from January 10 through February 20, 2026, and that closing date has passed. This page is therefore a reference entry for the 2026 cycle, not a live invitation to submit an application. The official calendar does not publish a specific 2027 general-application date here, so readers should not treat the recurring January 10–February 20 pattern as a confirmed 2027 deadline.

Türkiye Scholarships is a government-funded higher-education program of the Republic of Türkiye, coordinated by the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB). It supports international students and researchers through several program types. The general cycle described in this entry covers associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral study. Separate Success Scholarship and Research Scholarship windows exist, and they should not be confused with the closed 2026 general cycle.

Türkiye Scholarships 2026 at a glance

The stipend amounts above are the figures currently displayed on the official Türkiye Scholarships benefits page. They are useful for understanding the published award structure, but applicants should still check the official program page and their award documents for the terms that apply to a future cycle. A stipend is not the same thing as a promise to cover every personal expense. Travel, residence, food, books, deposits, and other costs can vary by city and study level even when the scholarship provides substantial support.

What the scholarship is designed to provide

The program’s published support is broader than tuition assistance. Türkiye Scholarships can place a successful candidate at a university and department through the central application system. The official benefits page also lists tuition coverage, accommodation, health insurance, a once-off flight ticket, Turkish-language education, and a monthly stipend. That combination matters because studying in another country involves several separate expenses and administrative decisions.

Accommodation terms differ by level. The official benefits page says undergraduate scholars can stay in dormitories for the duration of their studies, with dormitory fees covered by Türkiye Scholarships. Master’s and doctoral scholars are given the right to stay in a dormitory during the first year. For later years, the same page lists housing allowances of 6,000 TL for students in Istanbul and Ankara and 5,000 TL for students in other cities. Those figures should be checked again when a future award is issued because support terms can be revised.

The Turkish language component is important even for a student who chooses an English-medium department. The official application-steps page says awardees without a C1 Turkish Proficiency Certificate, including those placed in English or another language-medium program, must attend a one-year Turkish language course and attain C1 by the end of the academic year. This is a program requirement to plan for, not an optional extra that can be ignored when comparing departments.

The program also gives applicants a structured way to compare universities and departments. The official benefits page says candidates can select up to 12 choices in the online application system. The available choices depend on academic background, level, language of instruction, and the programs shown in TBBS. A sensible shortlist is more useful than choosing names at random: each choice should be compatible with the applicant’s transcript, exam results, language preparation, and longer-term study plan.

Eligibility and academic thresholds

The official criteria page says citizens of all countries may be eligible, subject to the program rules. It also lists graduates and people who will graduate at the end of the current academic year, before August, as eligible groups. Researchers and academics are included for the relevant scholarship types. Turkish citizens and people who have lost Turkish citizenship are listed as ineligible. The page also excludes people currently enrolled in Turkish university programs at the same level of education for which they plan to apply.

Minimum academic achievement depends on the level and field. The official criteria page lists 70% for associate and bachelor’s degree candidates, 75% for graduate candidates, and 90% for candidates in Health Sciences, specifically Medicine, Dentistry, and Pharmacy. Meeting a minimum does not guarantee selection. Türkiye Scholarships describes itself as competitive, so an applicant’s academic record, program fit, documents, and overall profile still matter.

Age limits are also level-specific on the official criteria page. Associate and bachelor’s candidates must be under 21. Master’s candidates must be under 30, PhD candidates must be under 35, and Research Scholarship candidates must be under 50. These are useful screening checks, but they are not a substitute for reading the requirements for the exact program and scholarship type. A person considering a research or short-term opportunity should not automatically apply the general full-time degree rules to that separate category.

Some departments impose additional conditions. The official application-steps page explains that many university programs are taught in Turkish, while some departments and universities offer programs in English or other languages. Candidates can check the language of instruction while choosing programs in TBBS. An internationally accepted language certificate may be required for an English- or other-language-medium program, and the chosen university or department may identify which certificates it accepts. International admission tests such as GRE, GMAT, or SAT are likewise required only when the chosen university or program requires them.

Undergraduate applicants using international qualifications such as SAT or GCSE instead of national examination results must provide the minimum qualifications needed to complete secondary school under those examination systems. An international test score by itself may not show that the applicant meets the full education requirement. The document set needs to tell a consistent story about identity, schooling, graduation status, and the selected degree level.

Required documents and application steps

The official “Application in 5 Steps” page states that applications are made online through TBBS and identifies the documents candidates must upload. The checklist includes a valid identity document, such as an ID card or passport, and a photograph taken within the last year. It also asks for national examination results if the applicant has them, a diploma or temporary graduation certificate, and a transcript.

Additional test documents depend on the chosen program. International exam results, including GRE, GMAT, or SAT, should be uploaded if the university or program requires them. International language-test results, such as TOEFL or DELF, should likewise be supplied when required by the chosen university or program. PhD applicants must provide a proposal for a research topic and a written example of research they have carried out.

For a future application window, the practical sequence is straightforward:

1. Read the official criteria and identify the correct scholarship type and study level. Check the academic percentage, age limit, citizenship rules, graduation timing, and any field-specific restrictions before investing time in the form.
2. Create or access the account in TBBS and review the programs available to the applicant. Compare the language of instruction and any university-specific test or certificate requirements before making choices.
3. Gather the identity, photograph, academic, graduation, national-exam, international-exam, and language documents that apply. PhD applicants should prepare the research proposal and writing example as serious academic materials rather than short statements assembled at the last moment.
4. Upload clear, complete files and review every field. Names, dates, grades, passport details, and graduation information should agree across the application. A document that is cropped, unreadable, or missing pages can create a problem even when the underlying qualification is strong.
5. Review the selected programs and the complete form before submission through TBBS. Keep copies of the submitted materials and any confirmation generated by the system. Because the 2026 cycle is closed, these steps are preparation guidance for a future announced window or another currently announced scholarship type, not instructions to submit for 2026.

The application is free of charge according to the official guidance. Applicants should be cautious about anyone asking for a Türkiye Scholarships application fee or claiming to guarantee selection. Paid help with translation or document preparation is a separate service and is not the same as an official application charge.

Understanding the calendar without guessing the next date

The official calendar lists the General Application Period as January 10–February 20. It lists evaluation in March–April, interviews in April–June, results in early August, initial procedures in August, and transfers of grantees to Türkiye in September. The official 2026 announcement gives the corresponding dated window as January 10–February 20, 2026. Those facts explain why the 2026 general cycle is closed now.

The calendar also lists recurring windows for other categories. Success Scholarship applications are shown for October–November, with evaluation and announcement in November. Research Scholarship applications are shown in four periods: January–March, April–June, July–September, and October–December, with the related results shown in April, July, October, and January. These are recurring calendar windows, not a confirmation that every category is open at every moment or that a particular applicant is eligible.

For the next full-time general cycle, readers should use the official calendar and announcements as the authority. The calendar’s recurring January 10–February 20 pattern is useful for planning, but it should not be rewritten as a confirmed 2027 deadline until the official announcement publishes a year-specific date. The TBBS login page may remain available even when a particular application period is closed, so the existence of an accessible portal does not prove that 2026 submissions are still accepted.

Why this entry remains useful after closing

An expired scholarship listing can still help a prospective applicant if it clearly distinguishes historical facts from current availability. The 2026 entry records the real closing date, the official support structure, and the documents that were specified for the general application. It also shows which checks should happen before a future form is completed: academic threshold, age, citizenship, graduation status, program language, required tests, and the Turkish-language requirement.

The most important next action is monitoring, not rushing to submit an old application. Read the official Türkiye Scholarships calendar at https://turkiyeburslari.gov.tr/calendar and the official application guidance at https://www.turkiyeburslari.gov.tr/applysteps. When a new cycle is announced, compare its year, dates, stipend information, eligible study levels, and document rules against this archive. If the new announcement changes any of those items, the new official announcement controls.

In short, Türkiye Scholarships 2026 offered a substantial, government-funded package for international candidates, but its general application period ended on 2026-02-20. The program has not published a specific 2027 general deadline in the official calendar checked for this update. Use this page to understand the 2026 requirements and support, and use the official calendar and announcements to determine when a future application can actually be made.