The minimum ALES score for academic staff positions in Turkey

Academic staff recruitment in Turkey reads ALES differently from graduate school admission. Where graduate institutes set their own thresholds programme by programme, academic cadre recruitment under Law 2547 works from a regulatory floor: a minimum ALES score of 70 for most cadres, set out in the governing regulation on appointments to academic positions other than professorial ones.

Which cadres this floor applies to

The 70-point minimum applies most consistently to arastirma gorevlisi (research assistant) and ogretim gorevlisi (teaching staff) cadres, the entry points into an academic career track that a university advertises and fills under its own recruitment notice, governed by the Ogretim Uyesi Disindaki Ogretim Elemani Kadrolarina Yapilacak Atamalarda Uygulanacak Merkezi Sinav ile Giris Sinavlarina Iliskin Usul ve Esaslar Hakkinda Yonetmelik. This is a distinct regulatory track from the case-by-case thresholds graduate institutes set for their own degree programmes, covered in how ALES is used for master’s and doctoral applications.

What ALES combines with here

Clearing the ALES floor is a necessary condition, not the whole selection process. The regulation combines ALES with the SGS or mezuniyet notu (undergraduate GPA), per the specific ilan (recruitment notice), and typically a YDS or equivalent foreign language score. The recruiting university then runs its own giris sinavi, a further entrance exam layered on top of these centrally set inputs, and the final appointment decision is the university’s, not OSYM’s.

Which puan turu matters here

As with graduate admission, the specific ALES score type, Sayisal, Sozel or Esit Agirlik, that a given academic cadre reads depends on the field the position sits in. A quantitative department’s research assistant posting will typically read Sayisal; a humanities department’s posting will typically read Sozel. The mechanics of how these three scores are built from the same exam sitting are explained in the difference between ALES verbal, quantitative and equal weight scores.

Why 70 is a floor, not a target

Clearing 70 makes a candidate eligible to be considered; it does not by itself make them competitive against other applicants for the same posting, particularly for sought-after positions at well-known universities. Treating 70 as the minimum to plan around, rather than the score to aim for, better reflects how the wider selection process actually weighs candidates once the university’s own giris sinavi enters the picture.

Timing your score against a recruitment notice

Because an ALES score is valid for five years from the exam date, a candidate does not need to sit the exam immediately before a specific posting appears; picking a cycle in advance and holding a valid, strong score ready for whenever a suitable posting opens is a more practical approach than sitting the exam reactively. The mechanics of that validity window are covered in how long an ALES score stays valid, and the broader picture of what ALES feeds into is in what ALES is actually used for.

FAQ

Is 70 the minimum ALES score for every academic staff position? It is the floor set for most arastirma gorevlisi and ogretim gorevlisi cadres under the governing regulation, though the specific recruitment notice for a given posting is always the binding source.

Does clearing the 70-point floor guarantee an interview? No. It makes a candidate eligible to be considered; the university’s own selection process, including its giris sinavi, decides who actually advances.

What else does the university weigh alongside ALES? Typically the SGS or mezuniyet notu and a YDS or equivalent language score, combined per the specific recruitment notice, plus the university’s own entrance exam.

Which ALES score type is read for academic staff cadres? It depends on the department’s field; quantitative departments typically read Sayisal, humanities departments typically read Sozel, but the specific notice always states which one applies.

Can I use an older ALES score for a newly advertised academic posting? Yes, as long as it is still within its five-year validity window and meets the score type and minimum the specific posting requires.