Basic Sciences Meeting Report Published

May 31, 2022

- The "Basic Sciences Meeting Report", the first of the Forum Series prepared by CoHE, has been published.

- The report includes topics such as the encouragement of students with high YKS placement scores to prefer basic sciences, the current status of research and technology infrastructures and solutions to improve these infrastructures, and solutions to improve education quality and the employment of graduates.

- CoHE President Erol Özvar: “We wish to discuss every issue concerning higher education in Türkiye according to data on an objective basis. In this direction, we take into account the opinions and experiences of scient​ists .”

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The "Basic Sciences Meeting Report", the first of the Forum Series prepared by CoHE, has been published.

The Basic Sciences Meeting, which was held on April 18, 2022 under the chairmanship of COHE President Erol Özvar, was made into a report. According to the information in the report, the current status of basic science programs was discussed at the meeting, which was held with the participation of CoHE representatives, university rectors and scientists from various universities.

The “Basic Sciences Meeting Report” includes topics such as the encouragement of students with high YKS placement scores to prefer basic sciences, the current status of research and technology infrastructures and solutions to improve these infrastructures, and solutions to improve education quality and the employment of graduates.

“The interest in basic sciences is not at the desired level”

In his opening speech, CoHE President Erol Özvar said that they gathered to evaluate the status of basic science education in Türkiye. He stated that they observed that the interest in basic sciences such as physics, chemistry, biology and mathematics at universities was not at the desired level and that they would try to find solutions to increase the interest in these departments.

Özvar noted that they wished to discuss every issue concerning higher education in Türkiye according to data on an objective basis. He emphasized that they took into account the opinions and experiences of scientists.

Özvar stated that he believed the meeting would contribute to creating a road map to evaluate the current status of the departments of mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology at universities, finding solutions to problems such as the decrease in the number of students and employment opportunities of graduates, and presenting a vision of higher quality education in basic science departments. He said that he considered this meeting as the beginning of bringing the issue to the agenda at the highest level.

He underlined that they had to ensure that competent young people maintained their interest in basic sciences for the continuity and development of Türkiye's R&D and innovation performance and said, “We are all aware of the contribution of basic sciences to research activities and the development of innovative and high-tech products with high added value. The impact of basic sciences on health fields such as medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, engineering fields and the economy is undeniable.”

-Problems and Resolutions Regarding Basic Science Programs-

In the report, the problems and resolutions related to basic science programs are presented under the topics of "Importance of Basic Sciences", "Program Updates", "Employment", "Preference and Referral", "Scholarships and Incentives", "Student Quality", "Research Assistant and Academic Staff", “Infrastructure and Physical Facilities” and “Others”.

The importance of basic sciences was emphasized at the meeting. It was also underlined that the key point of important discoveries was basic sciences when considering the history of science and that it was necessary to raise awareness to make Türkiye come to the fore in these fields.

It was emphasized that the programs should be updated and preferable programs should be created that would attract the attention of students preparing for university exams for this purpose. In addition, it was also underlined that it was aimed to ensure graduate students to gain more skills to get employed by the industry by increasing the intensiveness of practical courses, compared to theoretical courses. It was stated that an innovative approach should be shown by taking into account the international quality while updating the programs and that the number of common elective courses should be increased.

-Employment, Preference and Referral-

The resolutions for employment, one of the most mentioned problems, were included in the report. The resolutions such as the employment of basic science students in TUBITAK and research projects starting from their undergraduate education, the temporary increase of employment opportunities, and the temporary reduction of the number of program quotas and graduates to find a solution to the problem of employment were presented.

The issue of preference faced by universities were discussed under the topic of “Preference and Referral”. The resolutions such as providing referral to basic sciences at an early stage (starting from kindergarten), providing basic science education with good teachers, decreasing the number of quotas for open education, using different platforms with the aim of reaching the public and young people to increase the visibility of basic sciences were presented.

-Scholarships and Incentives, Student Quality-

The resolutions for scholarships and incentives, which are among the factors that will help increase preference and referral, were also included as a separate topic in the report. One of the common resolutions of the participants in this topic was the creation of mechanisms to ensure that undergraduate and graduate students, and academics receive sufficient financial support. It was suggested that students who are in the top 10 or top 20 should be given scholarships by CoHE and that more financial support should be provided. It was also emphasized that the industrial sector should be encouraged to financially support researchers at the doctoral level.

The report also includes participant suggestions for improving student quality under another topic. The resolutions such as ensuring quality in basic sciences education by taking into account successful international universities, reducing the number of undergraduate quotas, and providing doctoral education only at universities with high R&D capacity, infrastructure and physical facilities, and sufficient and competent academic staff were included.

-Research Assistant Position and Academic Staff-

The resolutions on research assistant position and academic staff, one of the most emphasized subjects by the participant in relation to employment, were also presented under a separate topic in the report. The issue that the participants emphasized and suggested the most in this topic was the low number of postgraduate students and, in connection with this, the number of research assistants and post-doctoral researchers. In order to solve this issue, it was proposed to increase the recruitment of assistants not only on scholarship but also on salary. Another issue was the decrease in the number of researchers employed from abroad due to the lack of financial resources. In addition, the challenges in the transition between academic staff positions, especially at bigger universities, due to the practice of staffing norms were cited as another issue. A proposal was made to develop a holistic policy for the solution of these issue.

-Infrastructure and Physical Facilities-

In the Basic Sciences Meeting Report, the issues and resolutions submitted by the participants regarding the infrastructure and physical facilities in the relevant departments of the universities were presented under a separate topic. While the issue most often mentioned by the participants was the inadequacy of laboratory facilities and physical infrastructures in many universities, which prevented the implementation of desired studies and insufficient funds, resolutions for this issue were listed as the increase of financial support, appropriations, incentives, and the contribution of the industry.

Erol Özvar chaired the meeting. The participants shared their opinions on making basic science programs more attractive for students. CoHE Deputy President, Prof. M. İ. Safa Kapıcıoğlu, CoHE Executive Board Member, Prof. Ömer Açıkgöz, Advisors to CoHE President, Assoc. Prof. Bekir S. Gür and Assoc. Prof. Enes Gök, Bartın University Rector, Prof. Orhan Uzun, Uşak University Rector, Prof. Ekrem Savaş, former CoHE Member, Prof. Durmuş Günay, former Rector of Koç University, Prof. Umran Inan, Institution Advisors to CoHE, Assoc. Prof. Ahmet Çalık, Dr. Maksud Önal, and F. Betül Coşkun, Tevhide Uçan on behalf of the Head of Education and Training Department at CoHE, and CoHE experts, Adnan Doğan and Handan Demir, attended the meeting.

Prof. Muhammet Şakiroğlu, Prof. Müşerref Önal, Prof. İlhami Gülçin, Prof. Çağatay Tavşanoğlu, Prof. Selim Süalp Çağlar, Prof. Ekbel Özbay, Prof. Bektaş Tepe, Prof. Havva Yağcı Acar, Prof. Hakan Altan, Prof. Gülay Özcengiz, Prof. Ezel Boyacı, Prof. Cihangir Tanyeli, Prof. Ferruh Özbudak, Prof. Ahmet Altındal, Prof. Filiz Vardar, Prof. Meral Birbir, Prof. Elif Akalın, Prof. Ayşe Erol, Prof. Mustafa Tüzen, Prof. Mustafa Soylak, Prof. Rana Nomak Sanyal and Prof. Nihat Sadık Değer also attended the meeting.