Graduate School in the Turkey Nuri Yavan-Erdem

Master and PhD Education in Geography:
Turkish Perspectives
Nuri YAVAN and Erdem BEKAROĞLU
Ankara University
Department of Geography
Academic Competencies Workshop
Ankara University, Faculty of Letters,
20-21 April, 2012, Ankara, Turkey
Presentation Outline
• Context: the impact of globalization and the Bologna Process
• The characteristics and organizations of graduate geography programs
in Turkey
• Recent changes and developments in graduate geography education in
Turkey
• Data and Methods
• Comparing the Turkish case versus leading universities in geography
• Geography master’s and PhD programs in Turkey
• The leading universities’ geography graduate programs in the world
• Main Findings
• Implications
Context: the impact of globalization and the
Bologna Process
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
World is changing
Recently globalization, Europeanization or Bologna process and neoliberalizm have
affected graduate education.
The impact of these processes is not always negative, but has positive outcomes as
well.
Internationalization of the graduate education is the main objective.
Both challenges and opportunities for student and universities (e.g. increased
international orientation, increased mobility of staff and student, so on…).
Turkey is changing
in 2001, Turkey officially joined the Bologna process.
Bologna Process are aiming at the reform of higher education in Europe.
Some progress has been made the implementation of the Bologna Process in
Turkey.
But ,still the awareness of the Bologna process in Turkish Higher Education is not
sufficiently mature and common.
Faculties and departments of universities related to
geographic education: Turkish system
List of Graduate Programs, Number of Faculty and Staff in Geography
Department and Teacher Training Department in Turkish Universities
No University
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
Year of
Establish City
ment
İstanbul University
1915
Ankara University
1935
Ege University
1979
Atatürk University
1974
Fırat University
1978
Onsekiz Mart University
1992
Balıkesır University
1992
Yüzüncü Yıl University
1992
Harran University
1992
Sütçü İmam University
1992
Süleyman Demırel University 1992
Fatih University
1996
Afyon Kocatepe University
1996
Ondokuz Mayıs University
2000
Marmara University
2001
Sakarya University
2001
Uşak University
2002
Giresun University
2007
Mustafa Kemal University
2009
Ahi Evran University
2009
Bilecik University
2009
Çankırı Karatekin University 2009
Karabük University
2009
Kilis 7 Aralık University
2009
İstanbul
Ankara
İzmır
Erzurum
Elazığ
Çanakkale
Balıkesır
Van
Şanlıurfa
Maraş
Isparta
İstanbul
Afyon
Samsun
İstanbul
Adapazarı
Uşak
Giresun
Hatay
Kırşehir
Bilecik
Çankırı
Karabük
Kilis
Atatürk University
Gazi University
Dokuz Eylül University
Selçuk University
Dicle University
Onsekiz Mart University
Marmara University
Karadeniz Teknik University
Faculty of Letters
Faculty of Letters
Faculty Of Letters
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
Faculty of Arts And
√
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Sciences
Geography Teacher
Training Department
No University
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Geography Department
1982
1982
1982
1982
1985
1994
1994
1982
Erzurum
Ankara
Izmır
Konya
Dıyarbakır
Çanakkale
Istanbul
Trabzon
MA/MSMA/MS
GIS
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
PhD
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
19
12
10
11
11
8
7
6
6
5
4
7
6
6
7
8
5
3
5
3
5
4
6
2
5
5
4
4
5
4
5
1
2
0
2
3
1
1
5
5
3
4
2
4
4
1
3
24
17
14
11
15
13
11
11
7
7
4
9
9
7
8
13
10
6
9
5
9
8
7
5
18
7
166
73
239
√
√
7
1
8
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
8
√
√
4
5
5
5
4
4
4
38
4
2
1
1
2
1
1
13
8
7
6
6
6
5
5
51
√
2
Kazım Karabekir Teacher
Training Faculty
Gazi Teacher Training Faculty
Buca Teacher Training Faculty
Selçuk Teacher Training Faculty
Teacher Training Faculty
Teacher Training Faculty
Atatürk Teacher Training Faculty
Fatih Teacher Training Faculty
0
Faculty Staff
Total
number
of
people
√
4
Number of Department
Number of Faculty and Staff in Geography Department
PhD Offering Geography Departments and their number of faculty
Graduate Programs
Number of graduate student: new admissions
Number of student receiving a graduate degree
The organizations of graduate geography programs in
Turkey
Graduate
Program
MA/MS (Thesis)
Admission Requirements
Graduation
Entrance Exam
Foreign Language
BA/BS CGPA=2.0/2.5 GRE > 600, GMAT >550 (or ALES > 55)
KPDS and ÜDS > 50, TOEFL-IBT > 60 (or IELTS > 4)
MA/MS (Non-thesis) BA/BS CGPA=2.0/2.5 GRE > 600, GMAT >550 (or ALES > 55)
KPDS and ÜDS > 50, TOEFL-IBT > 60 (or IELTS > 4)
PhD
BA/BS CGPA=3.0
GRE > 650, GMAT >600 (or ALES > 60)
KPDS and ÜDS > 60, TOEFL-IBT > 70 (or IELTS > 5)
PhD on BA/BS
BA/BS CGPA=3.0
GRE > 700, GMAT >650 (or ALES > 70)
KPDS and ÜDS > 70, TOEFL-IBT > 80 (or IELTS > 6)
Graduate
Program
Duration
(year)
Minimum Course & Credit
Requirements
Other Requirements
MA/MS (Thesis)
2+1
7 course having 21 credit + seminar
Thesis proposal and thesis
MA/MS (Non-thesis)
2+1
10 courses having minimum 30 credit
PhD
4+2
7 course having 21 credit + seminar
PhD on BA/BS
5+2
14 course having 42 credit + 2 seminar
Term project
Proficiency examination, dissertation
proposal, paper based on PhD and
dissertation
Proficiency examination, dissertation
proposal, paper based on PhD and
dissertation
The characteristics of graduate geography
programs in Turkey
Characteristics of Graduate Education
Practice in Turkey
De Jure
De Facto
Handbook/Guidebook/Brochure
Information On Website
Title of Course
Description of Course
Course Syllabus
Reference Letter
Statement of Purpose
Taking Course from Other Department
Compulsory Course
No
Very Rarely
Occasionally
Very Rarely
Very Rarely
No
No
Very Rarely
Never
√
√
Elective Course
Special Area Course (Individual Study)
English Course
Freedom to Choose Advisor
Changing Advisor
Dissertation Supervisory Committee
Comprehensive Exam
Defending Dissertation Proposal
Always
Very Unimportant
No
Very Rarely
Very Rarely
Unimportant
Little Importance
Very Poor
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
√
Almost Impossible
Almost Impossible
Not Effective, Formality
Not Public and Open
Not Public and Open
Moderately Important
√
Not Open to Audience
Selection of Thesis Jury Members
Departmental Award
Poor
Never
√
Not Expert and Relevant
Mobility
Never
Dissertation Defense
Financial Support for Thesis/Study
Assistantship
Monitoring and Quality Assurance System
Only 3 departments
Only 2 departments
Almost Impossible
Formality
Very Rarely
Barely Acceptable
No
Not At All
Method: Quantitative approach to graduate
education
How we can quantitatively assess the structure of the graduate
education in TR universities?
Step 1 – Making a data pool: We only sampled universities that
present both master and doctorate degree opportunities.
7 universities get into this category. They are geography
departments at universities in:
Ankara
Istanbul
Izmir
Balikesir
Canakkale
Elazig
Erzurum
Step 2 – Assessment criteria: Graduate courses in these
universities have been classified by taking into account two
different aspects.
i.
First, the courses have been categorized according to the
discipline’s major subjects:
ii.
Second, the courses have been categorized according to
whether they are:
Step 3 – Statistics & Illustration: Data processed by taking
account above assessment criteria described and plotted.
Physical geography (PG),
Human geography (HG),
Geographic Information Systems (GIS),
Physical-Human geography (PG-HG).
theoretical or
method or
application courses.
Method: Quantitative approach to graduate
education
How we can compare the current status of graduate education in TR
universities with …?
Step 1 – Sample selection: We preferred to sample 7 leading
universities in the World. QS World University Rankings (by
subject of geography and area studies) used.
Through the ranked list, only universities having geography
departments are sampled from top to down. British universities are
excluded. They are:
Step 2 – Assessment criteria: Graduate courses in these
universities have been classified by taking into account two different
aspects.
i.
First, the courses have been categorized according to the
discipline’s major subjects:
ii.
Second, the courses have been categorized according to
whether they are:
Step 3 – Statistics & Illustration: Data processed by taking account
above assessment criteria described and plotted.
Step 4 – Comparison: Obtained and processed data have been
compared to the structure of graduate education in TR
universities.
Berkeley – USA (2)
UCLA – USA (5)
NUS - Singapore (10)
Toronto – Canada (16)
Seoul – S. Korea (29)
CUHK – China (34)
Washington – USA (42)
Physical geography (PG),
Human geography (HG),
Geographic Information Systems (GIS),
Physical-Human geography (PG-HG).
theoretical or
method or
application courses.
Conclusions
• In Leading World University:
• Research methods is so important and common.
• Thought, philosophy and approach based courses are very significant
• Both are core courses and in many case mandatory
• In Turkish University:
•
•
•
•
Too many courses are available.
Number of course in PH-HG-GIS are 3 fold greater than LU
Research methods courses are very few
Turkish professor teach 7 fold higher than LU.
• This is only quantitative approaches to the graduate programs
• If you approaches the case in qualitatively, the situation is
getting even worse.
19
Thank you for
your attention and interest
20
Turkish case