- The number of female engineering students has surpassed 163,000.

- The share of women enrolled in engineering programs has increased by 15 percent over the past decade.

- President of the Council of Higher Education Erol Özvar:

"The achievements of Turkish engineers are a source of great pride for our country. We are especially pleased to see the growing contribution of women engineers to these success stories with each passing year."

June 23, 2026

The proportion of female students enrolled in engineering faculties continues to rise. Over the past decade, the number of women studying in engineering programs has increased by 11.1 percent, reaching 163,105.

Every year on June 23, International Women in Engineering Day is celebrated to promote the visibility of women in engineering and recognize the contributions of female engineers. According to data from the Council of Higher Education (CoHE), both the number and the proportion of female students enrolled in engineering programs in Türkiye have steadily increased in recent years.

The number of female engineering students rose from 146,766 in 2016 to 163,105 in 2026, representing an 11.1 percent increase over the past decade.

- The Upward Trend Continues

The share of women among all engineering students has also grown significantly. While women accounted for 27.5 percent of engineering students in 2016, this figure reached 31.6 percent in 2026.

The proportion of female students enrolled in engineering programs stood at 28.1 percent in 2022, 28.7 percent in 2023, 29.7 percent in 2024, 30.6 percent in 2025, and 31.6 percent in 2026. This represents a 15 percent increase in the share of women studying engineering over the past decade.

The data also indicate a consistent year-on-year increase over the last four years, with the 31.6 percent recorded in the 2025-2026 academic year marking the highest level in the past decade.

A total of 516,471 students were enrolled in engineering programs during the 2025-2026 academic year.

- "An Encouraging Development for the Higher Education System"

President of the Council of Higher Education Erol Özvar stated that Türkiye's recent achievements, particularly in the defense industry, are built upon a strong higher education system.

Emphasizing that 98 percent of the engineers employed in Türkiye's defense industry are graduates of Turkish universities, Özvar said: "This clearly demonstrates that the success achieved in strategic fields ranging from the defense industry to artificial intelligence, and from aviation to space technologies, is driven by the highly qualified human resources educated by Türkiye's higher education system."

Expressing his satisfaction with the growing number of women studying engineering, Özvar added: "The achievements of Turkish engineers, particularly in the defense industry as well as in aviation, space, artificial intelligence, software, energy, and advanced technologies, are a source of great pride for our country. We are especially pleased to see the growing contribution of our women engineers to these success stories with each passing year."

Özvar emphasized that strengthening women's presence in engineering is of strategic importance for Türkiye's development goals. "The growing interest of our female students in engineering programs further strengthens our country's pool of qualified human resources. As Türkiye, we attach great importance to educating more women engineers, particularly for the defense industry, while also encouraging their participation in research and development activities and in shaping technological innovation across all sectors."

Noting that the steady increase in the proportion of women enrolled in engineering programs is an encouraging development for the higher education system, Özvar expressed confidence that this upward trend will continue in the years ahead.