How to study for the YDS English exam: its format, four question types and a 12-week plan

The best way to prepare for the YDS (the Turkish foreign language proficiency exam) is to study each of its four question types separately and to practise against the clock in the final weeks. According to the ÖSYM guide, the English exam has 80 multiple-choice questions answered in 180 minutes, covering vocabulary, grammar, translation and reading comprehension. The score is calculated from correct answers only, so you should not leave any question blank.

What kind of exam is the YDS, and how is it scored?

The letters A–E in the table are not the same as the CEFR levels A1–C2: the guide defines them only as score bands. The institution asking for your score decides which score an application needs and for how many years a result counts. The rules are published again for every session, so read that session's guide before you apply. Source: ÖSYM, 2026-YDS/2 guide.

Vocabulary: learn each word with its sentence

YDS texts usually use formal language from topics such as science, health, history and society. So learn each word not on its own but inside an academic sentence, together with the words it usually goes with. Writing 10–15 words a day in a sentence and testing yourself the next day, three days later and a week later lasts longer than reading long lists once.

Grammar: tense agreement and linking words

In grammar questions, look at the whole sentence, not only the words around the gap: a time expression in the sentence (since 2010, by the time, last year) and the tense of the other verb often decide the right option. Study linking words separately too, because linkers with similar meanings take different structures. For example, although is followed by a full clause (Although it was raining, the match continued.), while despite is followed by a noun or an -ing form (Despite the rain, the match continued.). To see when each tense is used in one table, the English tenses summary is a good start.

Translation: lose no part of the meaning

In translation questions, the right option is the one that carries all the information in the source sentence. First find the subject and the main verb, then mark the tense and modality (may, must, should), negation, numbers and comparisons; an option that changes any of these is wrong. For example, in “Araştırmacılar, uykusuzluğun hafızayı olumsuz etkileyebileceğini öne sürüyor.” the ending “-ebileceğini” expresses possibility, so the right translation is “Researchers suggest that lack of sleep may affect memory negatively.”, not “affects” or “will affect”.

Reading comprehension: find the answer in the text

In reading questions the right option is usually a sentence from the text said in other words; an option that repeats the text's words is not right for that reason. You should be able to point to the sentence in the text that supports each answer; answering from your general knowledge of the topic can lead you to an option the text does not say. Linkers such as however, in contrast and therefore show where the writer's argument turns, so underline them as you read.

A sample 12-week study plan

The plan below is an example for someone who can give about an hour a day, six days a week, and has met the basic grammar topics once. If you have less time, stretch the weeks and keep the weekly balance. Each week, write the questions you got wrong, with their type, in an error notebook; go back to that notebook first in review weeks. The general steps of exam preparation are in Preparing for an English exam.

On the day: how to use the time

Eighty questions in 180 minutes is about two minutes and fifteen seconds per question on average. Reading questions take longer, so staying under that average on short questions leaves time for the texts. Do not spend more than a minute on a question you are stuck on; mark it, move on and come back at the end. Because a wrong answer costs no points, mark an option for any questions still blank in the last minutes. According to the guide, you may not leave the room before the first 135 minutes are over or during the last 15 minutes; plan your time with that in mind.

Frequently asked questions