Higher education of Turkey

By James R. King, Senior analysis & system Officer at the Institute of Overseas Education’s Scholar Rescue Fund

The conflict in Syria and ensuing humanitarian crisis has dominated worldwide headlines since 2011. The numbers are staggering. 200, 000 individuals killed. Half Syria’s pre-war population displaced, significantly more than 3 million as refugees and 7 million internally.

But why has this acute humanitarian crisis in addition created an increased knowledge crisis?

To resolve this question, it's important to notice that Syria boasted a powerful, well-funded, and mostly available degree system. Before the eruption of dispute, approximately one fourth of Syrian young adults (including women) benefitted from some type of post-secondary education or training. War, but has actually decimated the college system, and between the Syrian refugees, there are thousands of academics and university pupils who have been stop from degree indefinitely.

Istanbul, in which several third regarding the final number of Syrians
enrolled at Turkish universities are learning. (Photo: J. King)

Aided by the dispute showing no indication of closing and these refugees and displaced Syrians not able to get back residence, a massive degree crisis looms for a generation of Syrians, with possibly damaging outcomes for the future of Syria plus the center East region. Yet the international community has managed under earlier in the day paradigms of who a victim of war or refugee is and what they need, mainly neglecting degree as part of the broader humanitarian response.

An innovative new report by the Institute of International Education (IIE) as well as its Syria Consortium for advanced schooling in Crisis examines the circumstances and educational needs of Syrian university students and scholars in chicken specifically. “We Will Stop right here and Go-no-further: Syrian University Students and Scholars in chicken” is based on first-hand interviews that my peers from University of California, Davis and I conducted with Syrian refugees whose scholastic work or university research reports have already been interrupted because of the conflict. We additionally interviewed Turkish policymakers and university directors together with management of numerous Syrian-led and worldwide educational projects.

The report examines why therefore few Syrians tend to be continuing their particular college scientific studies in chicken – as few as 2% of university-age population (that's, 18-22 year-olds) during 2013-14 scholastic year, including significantly less than 1% of this university-age ladies. It also analyzes the Turkish government’s plan towards Syrians when you look at the realm of degree and provides policy and programmatic strategies for increasing their access, including describing the opportunities and difficulties for worldwide stakeholders to support their Syrian peers.

Perhaps amazingly, we found several grounds for optimism. Not only did Syrian registration boost by 300per cent through the 2012-13 educational 12 months, nevertheless the federal government of Turkey is rolling out a humane and forward-thinking plan on this issue that holds the possibility to boost Syrian usage of the country’s advanced schooling system.

The report’s subject refers to two options money for hard times among these refugees. We conclude that a substantial wide range of Syrians will stay in chicken even with the war in Syria subsides, as much feel that chicken provides a breeding ground to reconstruct their particular resides. We warn, however, that “the difficulties of displacement threat marginalizing these teenagers, leaving their particular potential unfulfilled.” The effects would-be devastating: “If consecutive age-cadres of Syrians are unable to carry on their knowledge, Syria will lose its future physicians, teachers, engineers, and college specialists. More, if situations require all of them to stay in Chicken, the prolonged or permanent disturbance of these training will hinder their ability to integrate and function in Turkish culture; when they relocate to the rest worldwide, it might impede their change to those brand new societies.”

This report could be the third stage of a regional study created by IIE together with UC Davis that's sustained by the Carnegie Corporation of brand new York. Early in the day reports looked at the circumstances in Lebanon (“The War Follows Them: Syrian University Students & Scholars in Lebanon”) and Jordan (“Uncounted and Unacknowledged: Syria’s University Students & Academics in Jordan”).