HISTORY

Turkish higher education dates back to the Nizamiye Madrasa, founded by Seljuk Turks in Baghdad in the 11^th century. A Turkish-Islamic institution, corresponding to the medieval university in many respects, the madrasa offered courses in religion, canon law and rhetoric as well as in philosophy, mathematics, astronomy and medicine. Geared to the learning and interpretation of knowledge rather than its creation and dissemination, the madrasa also served the needs of the Ottoman Empire during its formative centuries and years of power. Best known among Ottoman madrasas was that founded in Istanbul by Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror in 1363, only ten years after his conquest of the city. However, lacking the capacity to provide intellectual stimulation and induce change, the madrasa as an institution became an obstacle to Ottoman attempts at modernization in later years.

The decision to set up a European type of university was taken in 1836, soon after the proclamation of the Gulhane Imperial Edict (1839), an official declaration of will by the Ottoman Empire to modernize. It took seventeen years of preparation from 1836 to 1863 before the Darulfunun (House of Sciences) was inaugurated. Moreover, due to social resistance, mainly from teachers in the madrasas, which by that time had become bastions of reactionary activities, the Darulfunun was closed down and reopened twice before it was firmly established in 1900 with a new name, Dar’ul-fununi Osmani (The Ottoman House of Sciences).

The first third of the 20^th century was a period of great difficulty for the Darulfunun as it strove to prove itself academically. In 1912, twenty German professors joined its faculty, and research institutes were established in 1915, marking the beginnings of modern academic research. Soon after the proclamation of the Republic in 1923, madrasas and other religious schools were abolished; however, it became apparent that the Darulfunun, as an institution, was failing to keep up with the modernizing zeal of the Republican government in Ankara, the new capital.

In 1931, the government invited Professor Albert Malche of the University of Geneva to prepare a report on Turkish university reform. Ataturk, the founder and President of the Republic, read the report himself and jotted down his own thoughts on university reform in the margins of the pages of the report. Ataturk’s notes are fascinating in that they address a number of issues which even today are topics of much debate, including the reconciliation of academic freedom and accountability, criteria for academic promotions, leadership role of the rector, common core curricula for various disciplines, key role of libraries and part-time jobs for students, etc.

In the meantime, several independent schools and faculties were established in the new capital, such as the School of Law (1925), Gazi Institute of Education (1926), the Agricultural Institute (1930), the Faculty of Languages, History and Geography (1937), the Faculty of Science (1933) and the Faculty of Medicine (1935). In 1936 these were amalgamated to form Ankara University, and law 3936 was passed, covering the organization and governance of all three universities.

The established pattern of the Turkish university based on the Continental European model underwent a critical change in the 1950’s, following the coming to power of the Democratic Party. The relatively more market-oriented new government apparently believed that the manpower requirements of the growing market economy would be better met by the American university model, and showed a keen interest in the expansion of the university system. Four new universities were established: Karadeniz Technical University in the northeast and Ege University on the Aegean coast (both in 1955), Middle East Technical University (METU) in Ankara in 1956, and Ataturk University in the east in 1957.

Following the fall from power of the Democrats in 1960, a new constitution was prepared in which university autonomy was effectively defined as the right of faculty members to elect rectors and deans. However, an exceptional clause was included to preserve the special status of METU. Law 115 was passed soon after, removing any residual tutelage of the Ministry over the universities and, except in the case of METU, giving them the right to elect rectors and deans.

A new university law was passed in 1973, covering all state universities except METU, establishing the Council of Higher Education as a planning and coordination body and the Interuniversity Council as a supreme academic body composed of the rectors and two elected representatives from each university, including METU. However, because the Council of Higher Education was chaired by the Minister of National Education and included lay members, it was soon found unconstitutional by the Supreme Constitutional Court, on the grounds that the presence of such members violated university autonomy. In 1976, despite the exceptional constitutional clause maintaining the special status of METU, the Supreme Constitutional Court, on similar legal grounds, significantly curbed the powers of its board of trustees, effectively putting an end to the special system of governance at METU.

These schools were reorganized several times and, in 1969, were renamed state academies, of which there were three types: state academies of fine arts, state academies of engineering and architecture, and state academies of economic and administrative sciences.

The state academies were intended to be teaching institutions, similar to the polytechnics in the UK, offering four-year bachelor’s level programs in various professional fields. However, from the very beginning, they began to exert pressure on the parliament and the various governments to become institutions similar to universities in terms of functions and structures. They finally succeeded in 1977, when a law was passed giving them autonomy and allowing them to organize their academic units in a manner similar to universities. The universities resisted these developments, and often took various cases to the Supreme Court of Appeals, which in nearly all cases overturned the rules and regulations issued by the academies. Thus, at the end of the 1970’s, even though the functional differences between universities and state academies had ceased to exist, there was a state of legal turmoil.

In the meantime, demand for higher education was rapidly increasing due to a growing economy and population increase. To meet this demand, starting in the early 1960’s, several private higher schools were opened. These were profit-making institutions, offering four-year bachelor’s level programs in various professional fields. Towards the end of the 1960’s, the total student enrolment in these institutions reached nearly 50,000. However, in 1971 the Supreme Constitutional Court ruled that these institutions were in violation of the Constitution. Consequently, they were all affiliated with the existing state academies.

In face of such a rapidly expanding system and an increasing number of applicants, the Student Selection and Placement Center was established in 1973 to prepare, organize and administer a central university entrance examination at various locations throughout the country.

Even these developments were not enough to meet the increasing demand for higher education. Distance education by correspondence was started in 1973, along with the establishment of two-year vocational schools affiliated with the various ministries, mainly with the Ministry of National Education.

In the 1980-1981 academic year, the breakdown of the student enrolment and academic staff according to the types of higher education institutions, including the three-year teacher training institutions under the Ministry of National Education, was as follows:

The Constitution of the Republic was changed in 1981, and new provisions were made for higher education. Foremost among these was the re-establishment of the Council of Higher Education, this time as a constitutional body, to steer important activities of higher education institutions, i.e., planning, organization, governance, instruction and research. Secondly, provision was made for non-profit foundations to establish higher education institutions. The new higher education law went into effect in 1981, and institutions were radically reorganized.

One significant aspect of this restructuring was the elimination of institutional and functional fragmentation in the system. State academies were merged to form new universities, all vocational schools and conservatories were affiliated with universities, and teachers’ colleges were converted into faculties of education under various universities. In other words, higher education was completely unified under the Council of Higher Education without any room for possible governmental intervention.

The first private university, Bilkent, was founded in 1983, and the Gaziantep campus of METU was converted into an independent university in 1987.

Unlike western universities, which evolved from medieval European universities, starting with Bologna in 1088, Turkish universities did not evolve from the madrasas. On the contrary, they were all established in the Republican period to replace the madrasas, which were all closed down immediately after the proclamation of the Republic. In the period from 1923 to 1998:

• The number of universities increased from 1 to 72

• Student enrolment went from 2,913 to 1,322,335

• The annual number of graduates increased from 321 to 165,697

• The number of academic staff jumped from 307 to 56,328

Turkish universities are Republican institutions, the underlying spirit of which is the same as that of the founders of the Republic. This spirit is best expressed in Ataturk’s dictum:

“The only true guide in life is science.”

“Scientia dux vitae certissimus”

Development and expansion of higher education in Turkey is the manifestation of the aim of the Republic of Turkey as stated by Ataturk:

“To achieve contemporary levels of civilization”

Turkish universities are proudly striving to achieve this goal and to serve humanity and the people of Turkey.

TURKISH UNIVERSITIES