14 - Turkey - Progression of students

Every university determines the rules about passing the courses or classes within the legal legislative frame independently by regulations that is issued by their own senates. Common features and similarities on applications of passing a course or class at the universities are very much because they are prepared on the same shared legal basis. In this context students’ progress can be handled in two groups as (1) preparatory classes and (2) intermediate classes. Preparatory classes can be one year preparatory foreign language classes as well as in a scientific preparation form in graduate programs.

Higher education institutions can open a compulsory or optional class under the name of Preparatory Foreign Language Class with the reasoned decision of the senate, suggestion of rector and approval by Yükseköğretim Kurulu (YÖK). Students who are registered in programs in which education is partially or completely in foreign language and programs that education is in Turkish and preparatory class is a must, have to enter for Foreign Language Proficiency Examination and in case that they are unsuccessful in this examination they should attend and accomplish preparatory school. Students who are educated in the preparatory school have to accomplish preparatory school successfully in order to begin their education in bachelor’s degree or graduate degree programs. Continuation applied to preparatory classes that have two half terms of a normal education period, intermediate examination amount and intermediate examinations, half term final examination, general examination, short-term examination, homework and other activities’ contributions on achievement score, make-up examination that is a given right for students who can not exhibit sufficient achievement at the end of the final examination, summer education, foreign language support education and rudiments to be applied in subjects such as cancelling a registry are determined by regulations that are issued by senates of the higher education institutions. (Yükseköğretim Kurumlarında Yabancı Dil Eğitim-Öğretimi ve Yabancı Dille Eğitim–Öğretim Yapılmasında Uyulacak Esaslara İlişkin Yönetmelik, Articles 7-9). Preparatory foreign language classes are evaluated as a single course even if they consist of different courses. Every university can determine the minimum achievement score that is determined for these classes on different levels. Students who can not accomplish preparatory class successfully within its normal period or within the granted additional periods can not begin the fist grade or program courses.

In graduate programs, maximum one year Scientific Preparatory Program can be applied for candidates to supply their deficiencies under these conditions: (i) candidates whose bachelor’s degree is in a different field than the master degree or doctorate programs that they applied, (ii) master degree candidates who obtain their bachelor’s degrees from a higher education institution other than the higher education institution they applied, (iii) doctorate candidates who obtain their bachelor’s or master degrees from a higher education institution other than the higher education institution they applied (iv) candidates who obtain their bachelor’s or master degrees in other field other than the doctorate program that they applied.

A student in a scientific preparatory program can take courses of master degree programs as well as scientific preparatory courses with the suggestion by chair of the department add approval by Administrative Board of Institute (graduate school). Continuation, examinations, achievement grades, conditions to be deemed as successful, course repetition and other rudiments about scientific preparatory program are mentioned in the regulation that is approved by the concerned senate. Students who can not accomplish scientific preparatory courses within the given period can not continue to take courses from the program and their student status end.

There are two ways of advancement after students begin program lessons: (1) on the basis of year and passing class and (2) on the basis of term, passing lesson and credit.

Generally in medicine and dentistry faculties evaluation is done on year and class pass basis. In programs that conduct this evaluation system courses, course committee (group), practices, training course are given at the beginning of the school term as a whole. Student who registers and renews his/her registry is considered to be registered in all courses of the program that year. If student is unsuccessful in one of the courses of the current year, he/she can not take courses from the upper class for the next year and repeats the lesson/lessons in which he/she is unsuccessful.

Course pass and credit system is applied mostly in programs other than medicine and dentistry. Courses are generally independent from each other in programs that this system is applied. In programs that this system is applied, minimum and maximum credit limits that is required to be taken for each term, compulsory and optional courses, courses with prerequisites are determined by education regulations that each university issue. Students take courses within the limits foreseen by these regulations. Student who provides minimum continuation and achievement score foreseen for a course is deemed as successful in that lesson. Courses that the students take do not prevent him/her to pass to the upper class or take courses from upper class. Student should take the course/courses that he/she is unsuccessful once again at the first half term when the course is opened. However in case of overlapping of repeated lessons with the half term course schedule, student may not take one of these courses by the decision of the concerned administrative board. A student has no further connection with the university if he/she does not take the lesson consecutively twice that he/she should take without decision by the concerned administrative board.

While some universities associate the advancement of the student with the minimum achievement score, some of them require a specific academic average for the student to continue his/her program after any half-term. Students who cannot achieve the foreseen academic average can be obliged to repeat the half-term or school year. Those students have to take the courses they fail at first. They can take the courses that they passed before in order to raise their averages. Students who have to repeat the semester can not take the courses they did not take before to their programs as long as they could not raise their general academic averages on or above the minimum average foreseen. Student who fulfills this requirement resumes his/her education.

All higher education programs have minimum credit and maximum year limits. Generally excluding common mandatory courses (some lessons that students of all the programs have to take are not included in graduation credit) five year educational programs contain minimum 160 credits, four year programs minimum 128 credits, higher vocational school programs minimum 64-credits. Master degree program with thesis consists of minimum seven lessons; one seminary lesson and one thesis study totally not less than twenty-one credits. Master degree program without thesis consists of minimum ten courses and a term project without thesis, not less than 30 credits totally. Doctorate programs consist of minimum seven lessons, one qualifying exam, dissertation research proposal and dissertation study totally not less than twenty-one credits. Students who are admitted with bachelor’s degree program consists of minimum 42 credit fourteen lessons, qualifying exam, dissertation research proposal and dissertation study. Generally semester credit value for a course is evaluated as the complete weekly hours of a theoretical course which lasts a semester plus half of the hours for weekly practice or laboratory hours.

In higher education institutions associate degree and bachelor’s degree students are given maximum four years for the two year associate degree programs and seven year for bachelor’s degree programs to accomplish their education. Students have to accomplish five year programs maximum in eight years and six year programs maximum in nine years. Yet at the end of these periods senior students are given two additional examination rights including make-up examination for all the lessons that they fail. At the end of these examinations students who reduce number of failed lessons to five lessons are given rights to enter for examinations for three half-terms, students who fail in up to five lessons without entering additional examinations have the same right for four half-terms and students who fail in three or less lessons have the same right without limits. Last term (for the institutions conducting education on the basis of lesson pass, last year student) students who pass all lessons required to be graduated from the program they attained yet are unable to provide the score average that is foreseen in order to be deemed as successful within the regulations and therefore came to the condition that their connections may be terminated with the university are granted limitless examination right from the last two year lessons of the program that they prefer in order to raise their score averages. These students are exempt from continuation to the classes except practical courses and courses that never taken before. Student who never enters for the examination consecutively or intermittently for three academic years in total is considered to be forbearing of limitless examination right and can not benefit by this right. Students who hold limitless examination right continue to pay tuition fee but can not benefit by other student right excluding examination right. Open education students are not restricted with these limits as long as they benefit by studentship rights.

Maximum graduation times are determined for graduate programs. According to this period of accomplishment for a master degree program without thesis is maximum six half terms and with thesis four half terms, period of accomplishment for a doctorate program is eight half terms for the ones who are admitted with master degrees and ten years with bachelor's degrees. Maximum accomplishment period for the required credited courses for a doctorate program is four half terms for the ones who are admitted with master degrees and six half-terms with bachelor's degrees.

Institutions:

 
Higher Education Council
Yükseköğretim Kurulu Başkanlığı 06539 Bilkent Ankara/TÜRKİYE
Tel.:+90 312 298 70 00
Fax:+90 312 266 51 53
E-mail:   webadmin@yok.gov.tr
Website:http://www.yok.gov.tr


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Date: 2009
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