January 7, 2025 /Izmir

Erol Özvar, President of the Council of Higher Education, visited Izmir to attend the fourth of the Regional Meetings with Universities on the Vision of Turkish Higher Education Towards 2030. In addition to regional universities, rectors and representatives of TRNC universities attended the meeting for the first time.

In his opening remarks, Özvar stated that TRNC has the potential to serve as an “island of universities” not only for the youth of Northern Cyprus but also for the youth all over the world. He said that the close cooperation of TRNC higher education institutions with Turkish higher education institutions would attract the attention of international students.

Emphasizing that both Turkish and TRNC universities should do their part in terms of international visibility and prestige, Özvar stated that the Council of Higher Education will continue to support TRNC universities.

Özvar stated that they want to meet with sector representatives in organized industrial zones in the coming period to open more vocational colleges and said that they are working towards this goal in Izmir.

-Higher Education Vision for 2030-

CoHE President Özvar listed the prominent items regarding the 2030 Vision as follows: Determining tuition fee policies in access to higher education, Balancing new educational technologies and traditional education, Quality assurance and global competitiveness, Academic motivation and scientific productivity, Changing demographic structure and demand for access to universities, Employment-sensitive programs and labor market expectations from university graduates (skill mismatch), Sustainability and Internationalization.

As part of his visit to Izmir, he visited Izmir Kâtip Çelebi University and received information from Rector Prof. Saffet Köse about the activities at the university. Then he attended the senate meeting.

During his visit, Özvar visited Izmir Kâtip Çelebi University campus and chatted with students. He also met with Prof. Salih Tuğ, Professor of Islamic Law and retired faculty member. Özvar was accompanied by CoHE Executive Board Members Prof. Naci Gündoğan, Prof. Erol Arcaklıoğlu and Prof. Hüseyin Karaman.