Council of Higher Education

Turkish students are redefining their educational horizons when it comes to education, with a growing inclination toward affordable Germany over the once-dominant preference of the United States.

With an aim to enhance the quality of postgraduate education, the Higher Education Council (YÖK) has introduced new criteria focusing on publications and accreditations.

Accordingly, universities will now need at least one program accreditation for doctoral programs. Moreover, faculty members must meet a minimum publication requirement for both master's and doctoral programs.

Representatives of 150 universities from 67 countries attended the ninth Eurasia International Higher Education Summit (EURIE) in Istanbul on Feb. 27.

"The future of higher education will be shaped by our ability to embrace the dual nature of cooperation and competition," said Erol Özvar, the head of the Higher Education Council (YÖK), at the opening of the summit.

Ankara and Baku have signed an agreement to establish the Türkiye-Azerbaijan University which will bring Turkish higher education experience to the Azerbaijani capital.

The rate of female students in universities has risen to 51.7 percent, while the percentage of female academics in Türkiye has ticked up to 46.4 percent in 2024, surpassing the OECD countries' average of 43 percent, according to a report by the Higher Education Council (YÖK).

The average time it takes for fresh graduates to get a job is around six months, with the satisfaction rate of employers with new graduates revealed as 78 percent, according to data from the Higher Education Council (YÖK).

YÖK prepared the "University Monitoring and Evaluation General Report-2023," which analyzes 208 universities in Türkiye in line with 74 different indicators.

The Council of Higher Education (YÖK) has recently sparked heated debates by allocating more than 20,000 quotas in associate and undergraduate programs specifically for women over the age of 34 who have not previously received an undergraduate education.

Around 1 million students out of the nearly 3 million who appeared in the university entrance exams have become eligible to enroll in universities for the forthcoming academic year, with 10 students getting flawless scores in their respective fields.

Türkiye's Higher Education Board (YÖK) head Erol Özvar has advised foundation universities to make inflation rates a top priority when determining fees.

Speaking to the press in Ankara, Özvar stated that they expect foundation universities to take into account the increase in rates in previous years.

Universities that continue education remotely after the Feb. 6 earthquakes will switch to face-to-face education as of April 3, Council of Higher Education (YÖK) President Erol Özvar has announced.

There will be no attendance requirement for students, while educational institutions will also provide online access to the content of the face-to-face courses.