The outcomes of Youth Awards® 2026, benchmarked as one of Turkey’s most comprehensive talent and employer brand surveys, were revealed on September 16 at the Mandarin Oriental Bosphorus Istanbul. Evaluating 165 major enterprises across 32 categories spanning finance, automotive, retail, energy, and defense, the study mobilized 201,740 total student votes.
Female participants accounted for 58% of the voter base, while male students represented 42%; university juniors and seniors cast 32.4% of all ballots. Yıldız Technical University, Marmara University, and Istanbul Technical University led participation volumes, with Industrial Engineering, Computer Engineering, and Business Administration students yielding the highest turnouts.
Sectoral Category Winners: Premier Employers of Choice
Industry-specific rankings placed the following enterprises at the top of their segments:
Defense Industry: ASELSAN
Automotive: Mercedes-Benz Otomotiv
Financial Services: Türkiye İş Bankası
Heavy Industry & Manufacturing: Şişecam
Aviation & Logistics: Turkish Airlines
FMCG: Anadolu Efes
Conglomerate / Holding: Borusan Holding
Technology (1000+ Employees): Siemens
Technology (250-999 Employees): Mastercard
Technology (50-249 Employees): ikas
Energy: Enerjisa
Pharmaceuticals & Healthcare: Abdi İbrahim
Consumer Electronics / Durables: Samsung
Retail: Migros
Insurance: Allianz Türkiye
Sector Special Recognition Awards: Akbank, Akçansa, Boehringer Ingelheim
Executive Accolades and Next-Gen Recruitment AI
Corporate leaders recognized by university talent included:
Most Inspiring CEO: Ali Fuat Orhonoğlu (Unilever Country Head Turkey)
Most Inspiring CFO: Çiçek Uşaklıgil Özgüneş (Coca-Cola İçecek)
Most Inspiring CHRO: Cenk Akıncılar (QNB Türkiye)
Key Talent Initiatives: TAI / TUSAŞ swept both short-term (SKY Discover) and long-term (SKY Experience) internship categories, Coca-Cola İçecek won for graduate recruitment (Drive4Sales), and BSH took the top spot in female employment programs (WE Power).
Addressing attendees, Youthall CEO Emre Aykan stated that modern talent evaluates purpose, inclusive culture, and flexibility over conventional corporate narratives. Aykan also unveiled Hireall, an integrated, AI-driven end-to-end talent acquisition tool managing workflows from job postings to employment offers.
