Research Article

A PROPOSAL FOR A THREE-STAGE MIP MODEL FOR EXAMINATION TIMETABLING BASED ON HETEROGENEOUS TIME SLOTS AND WORKLOAD FAIRNESS

Volume: 27 Number: 1 June 29, 2026
TR EN

A PROPOSAL FOR A THREE-STAGE MIP MODEL FOR EXAMINATION TIMETABLING BASED ON HETEROGENEOUS TIME SLOTS AND WORKLOAD FAIRNESS

Abstract

This paper presents a three-stage mixed-integer programming (MIP) model for addressing the complex examination timetabling problem faced by 12 departments within a faculty. The first stage focuses on assigning days and time slots, the second stage allocates rooms, and the third stage assigns invigilators. Unlike traditional approaches that rely on fixed-length periods, the day and time slot assignment model incorporates heterogeneous slots of 30, 60, and 90 minutes. This design enables assigning the most appropriate time duration to each exam, thereby improving time efficiency and reducing idle periods. Furthermore, the model ensures an even distribution of departmental workload throughout the examination period, preventing unfair clustering of exams across departments. The room allocation model is formulated to minimize the number of empty seats in assigned rooms, which enhances room utilization and overall capacity planning. In the invigilator assignment stage, workload balancing is emphasized to distribute responsibilities equitably among available staff members. Due to the NP-hard complexity of the problem, a genetic algorithm (GA) was utilized to produce feasible and high-quality solutions. The generated schedules were evaluated by comparing them to manually prepared timetables, and the results demonstrated significant improvements in fairness, efficiency, and resource utilization, highlighting the practical value of the proposed MIP model.

Keywords

References

  1. Al-Yakoob, S. M., Sherali, H. D., & Al-Jazzaf, M. (2010). A mixed-integer mathematical modeling approach to exam timetabling. Computational Management Science, 7, 19-46. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10287-007-0066-8
  2. Al‐Hawari, F., Al‐Ashi, M., Abawi, F., & Alouneh, S. (2020). A practical three‐phase ILP approach for solving the examination timetabling problem. International Transactions in Operational Research, 27(2), 924-944. https://doi.org/10.1111/itor.12471
  3. Aslan, E., Şimşek, T., & Karkacıer, A. (2017). A binary integer programming model for exam scheduling problem with several departments. The Journal of Knowledge Economy & Knowledge Management, 12(2), 169-175.
  4. Ayob, M., Abdullah, S., & Malik, A. M. A. (2007). A practical examination timetabling problem at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. International Journal of Computer Science and Network Security, 7(9), 198-204.
  5. Bazari, S., Pooya, A., Soleimani Fard, O., & Roozkhosh, P. (2023). Modeling and solving the problem of scheduling university exams in terms of new constraints on the conflicts of professors’ exams and the concurrence of exams with common questions. OPSEARCH, 60(4), 877–915. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12597-023-00638-z
  6. Bettinelli, A., Cacchiani, V., Roberti, R., & Toth, P. (2015). An overview of curriculum-based course timetabling. Top, 23(2), 313-349. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11750-015-0366-z
  7. Brogniet, A., & Ninane, C. (2016). Construction of an automated examination timetabling system for École Polytechnique de Louvain [Master’s thesis, Université catholique de Louvain].
  8. Burke, E. K., Newall, J. P., & Weare, R. F. (1995). A memetic algorithm for university exam timetabling. In International Conference on the Practice and Theory of Automated Timetabling (pp. 241-250). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-61794-9_63

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Econometrics (Other)

Journal Section

Research Article

Publication Date

June 29, 2026

Submission Date

September 3, 2025

Acceptance Date

December 17, 2025

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Volume: 27 Number: 1

APA
Yılmaz, G., & Oruç, K. O. (2026). A PROPOSAL FOR A THREE-STAGE MIP MODEL FOR EXAMINATION TIMETABLING BASED ON HETEROGENEOUS TIME SLOTS AND WORKLOAD FAIRNESS. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi İşletme Fakültesi Dergisi, 27(1), 1-25. https://doi.org/10.24889/ifede.1777317
AMA
1.Yılmaz G, Oruç KO. A PROPOSAL FOR A THREE-STAGE MIP MODEL FOR EXAMINATION TIMETABLING BASED ON HETEROGENEOUS TIME SLOTS AND WORKLOAD FAIRNESS. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi İşletme Fakültesi Dergisi. 2026;27(1):1-25. doi:10.24889/ifede.1777317
Chicago
Yılmaz, Gökhan, and Kenan Oğuzhan Oruç. 2026. “A PROPOSAL FOR A THREE-STAGE MIP MODEL FOR EXAMINATION TIMETABLING BASED ON HETEROGENEOUS TIME SLOTS AND WORKLOAD FAIRNESS”. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi İşletme Fakültesi Dergisi 27 (1): 1-25. https://doi.org/10.24889/ifede.1777317.
EndNote
Yılmaz G, Oruç KO (June 1, 2026) A PROPOSAL FOR A THREE-STAGE MIP MODEL FOR EXAMINATION TIMETABLING BASED ON HETEROGENEOUS TIME SLOTS AND WORKLOAD FAIRNESS. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi İşletme Fakültesi Dergisi 27 1 1–25.
IEEE
[1]G. Yılmaz and K. O. Oruç, “A PROPOSAL FOR A THREE-STAGE MIP MODEL FOR EXAMINATION TIMETABLING BASED ON HETEROGENEOUS TIME SLOTS AND WORKLOAD FAIRNESS”, Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi İşletme Fakültesi Dergisi, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 1–25, June 2026, doi: 10.24889/ifede.1777317.
ISNAD
Yılmaz, Gökhan - Oruç, Kenan Oğuzhan. “A PROPOSAL FOR A THREE-STAGE MIP MODEL FOR EXAMINATION TIMETABLING BASED ON HETEROGENEOUS TIME SLOTS AND WORKLOAD FAIRNESS”. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi İşletme Fakültesi Dergisi 27/1 (June 1, 2026): 1-25. https://doi.org/10.24889/ifede.1777317.
JAMA
1.Yılmaz G, Oruç KO. A PROPOSAL FOR A THREE-STAGE MIP MODEL FOR EXAMINATION TIMETABLING BASED ON HETEROGENEOUS TIME SLOTS AND WORKLOAD FAIRNESS. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi İşletme Fakültesi Dergisi. 2026;27:1–25.
MLA
Yılmaz, Gökhan, and Kenan Oğuzhan Oruç. “A PROPOSAL FOR A THREE-STAGE MIP MODEL FOR EXAMINATION TIMETABLING BASED ON HETEROGENEOUS TIME SLOTS AND WORKLOAD FAIRNESS”. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi İşletme Fakültesi Dergisi, vol. 27, no. 1, June 2026, pp. 1-25, doi:10.24889/ifede.1777317.
Vancouver
1.Gökhan Yılmaz, Kenan Oğuzhan Oruç. A PROPOSAL FOR A THREE-STAGE MIP MODEL FOR EXAMINATION TIMETABLING BASED ON HETEROGENEOUS TIME SLOTS AND WORKLOAD FAIRNESS. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi İşletme Fakültesi Dergisi. 2026 Jun. 1;27(1):1-25. doi:10.24889/ifede.1777317

Dokuz Eylül University Journal of Faculty of Business
is indexed and abstracted by TR-DİZİN, EBSCO and SOBIAD. 

Dokuz Eylül University Publisher's Web Page

Journal Contact Details