The Turkish government has submitted a bill to parliament that foresees the establishment of 15 new universities across the country, Education Minister Ä°smet Yılmaz told state-run Anadolu Agency on April 20.

Three new state universities will be founded in the southeastern province of Gaziantep, the Central Anatolian province of Sivas and the Black Sea province of Samsun, while two new foundation universities will open in Istanbul and the Aegean province of Ä°zmir.

According to the proposed legislation, some of those planned 15 new universities will be created by splitting 10 existing universities.

Gazi University in the capital Ankara, Istanbul University, Ä°nönü University in the eastern province of Malatya, Karadeniz Technical University in the Black Sea province of Trabzon and Selçuk University in the Central Anatolian province of Konya are expected to split.

The legislation also foresees splitting Dumlupınar University in the Aegean province of Kütahya, Erciyes University in the Central Anatolian province of Kayseri, Sütçü Ä°mam University in the southeastern province of KahramanmaraÅŸ and Mersin University in the southern province of Mersin.

High school placement process

Yılmaz also commented on a new system that regulates high school enrollment, which has caused controversies.

Families and students are concerned that under the new system students may have to attend schools they do not want to enroll in.

“This new system is different from the Transition from Primary to Secondary Education [TEOG] exam; it is much better than TEOG. Its benefits will be seen in time,” Yılmaz said, trying to dispel fears.

“In June, we will release the respective guide for high school placement. Then parents and students will see that no one will enroll in a high school they do not want to attend,” the minister added. 

In November last year, Yılmaz unveiled the details of the new model, called the System of Educational District and Regional Enrollment.

The new education system is based upon the principle of students enrolling at the nearest school available.

According to the new system, a central high school entrance exam will only be held at specific schools.

“With this new system, students will be admitted to the schools nearest to where they live. That is the basic point,” Yılmaz said at that time, adding that there will be an optional examination only for “project schools.”