AI-Powered University Orientation Platform — Algeria's National Baccalaureate Placement System

Algeria's public university system uses a centralized post-baccalaureate orientation process that matches each candidate's exam score and stated preferences to available places. For the July 2026 admission cycle, the Ministry of Higher Education integrated an AI-based matching algorithm into this process for the first time.

Weigh student preferences, academic performance and each institution's intake capacity to reduce costly mid-cycle programme transfers and better align graduate output with labour-market needs.

Minister of Higher Education Kamel Baddari's ministry deployed the matching algorithm across the July 2026 cycle, publishing results through the orientation-esi.dz platform; 2,040 students were placed into newly created programmes in AI, cybersecurity and quantum computing; a re-registration window (31 July-2 August 2026) was offered to unplaced students.

Of 403,119 registered baccalaureate holders, 391,018 (97%) received a place among their expressed choices: 84.71% in one of their top three preferences, 94.46% in one of their top five, and 96.97% in one of their top six. 227,590 students were directed to science and technology tracks versus 163,428 to humanities and social sciences.

The results are administrative self-reports from a single cycle; no independent bias testing across regions or gender has been published, and no like-for-like comparison to the prior manual/rules-based process exists, so the figures show reach and stated efficiency rather than a demonstrated improvement in placement quality.