For Students
Visa and Residence
Visa Procedures
Students who will come to study in Turkey must obtain a student visa from nearest Turkish Republic Consulate. Student visa procedures can take time and therefore it is important that you apply for a student visa as soon as you receive your admission letter.
You can learn Republic of Turkey visa regime applied to your country of citizenship from Republic of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs website. http://www.mfa.gov.tr/visa-information-for-foreigners.en.mfa
You have the opportunity to apply for a visa on the Internet. For this procedure, you can visit https://www.konsolosluk.gov.tr/.
Residence permit procedures
Having arrived in Turkey, and after completing your university registration, the most important thing you need to do is to apply for a residence permit.After you fill out the application form at https://e-ikamet.goc.gov.tr/, you should go to Provincial Directorate of Migration Management on the day and hour of the appointment or to deliver paperwork from your university’s international student office. You will be able to carry out all formal transactions as long as you stay in Turkey with your residence card and foreign identification (YU) number you receive after your application.
If your residence card does not expire, it can be used while entering or leaving Turkey, and thus you do not need to get a new visa. It is important that you renew your residence permit before the validity period expires.
You are exempt from residence application fee as a student, you are only required to pay the card fee.
Visa and Residence Videos
Healthcare Services
Insurance Information
People who come to Turkey as international students are required to have health insurance during their official residence. There are two types of health insurance. If you want, you can go to any private health insurance agency and make use of policies tailored for foreigners. Keep in mind that the coverage of these policies is limited and is only valid in hospitals where the insurance company is contracted!
Another option is General Health Insurance (GSS). This type of insurance, governed by the Social Security Institution of the Republic of Turkey, will give you the right to benefit from treatment in all state hospitals free of charge. In this way, you can get your prescription medications by paying a very low amount of contribution. The most important point to note with GSS is that you must make your application within three months following your university registration.
Renewal of your private or general health insurance every year is both a legal necessity and will save you from paying the treatment fee for an unexpected health problem.
Health services
All universities in Turkey have their own health centers. In these centers, which are generally known as MEDİKO, all students can easily perform basic health checks and medical examinations. You can contact the university’s relevant departments for detailed information about health center of your university.
Pharmacies in Turkey are open until 19:00 in the evening except on Sundays. After 19:00 and on Sundays, a certain number of on-duty pharmacies are in service in each city. Emergency service units of hospitals and university health centers provide services 7/24 for emergencies.
For ambulance services, call center number to call for free from anywhere in Turkey is 112
Work Opportunities
Working while studying
In particular, international students enrolled in a master’s or PhD program in Turkey can work as researchers in scientific projects related to their work to finance their graduate studies. Some private universities also accept graduate students with full scholarships and can provide assistantships for students in exchange for this scholarship. Undergraduate students will often find opportunities to work in a part-time job, according to their course schedules.
If you have a plan to work in your student life, what you need to know first is that your student residence permit does not cover the work permit alone. Therefore, if you want to work during your studies, you will first need to obtain a work permit. There are different types of work permits such as short-term, perpetual, independent work and are given by General Directorate of International Labour.
This information does not cover internship programs. For information about the internship Click Here
Internship Opportunities
Higher education program you are enrolled in Turkey may be a compulsory or elective internship activity. This type of internship activities, which are mostly seen in undergraduate programs, are usually conducted during summer term. In this case, you do not need to get a work permit, and with the guidance of your university, you can find opportunities for internships in many private companies, government organizations, international organizations or NGOs in Turkey.
You can also have the opportunity to do internship for 2-12 months in a European country under Erasmus + programme, which is open to participants from all over the world during your study in Turkey or immediately after graduation. Don’t forget to be in close contact with the International Office of your University for this!
https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/opportunities/traineeships-students_en
If you are a student enrolled in a university abroad and are planning to come to Turkey for internship, it is good to know that you are exempt from the work permit within certain conditions.
After Graduation
If you want to work in Turkey after graduation, do not miss the career fairs held in the university campuses. In these fairs, human resources officials come from many important companies in Turkey. They give information about their work and internship opportunities, while also collecting resumes from alumni candidates. These fairs are a great chance for business and internship opportunities.
In addition, many university career centers provide students with a variety of consultancy services, including announcement of job opportunities for post-graduation career steps, interview simulation and resume creation.
Recognition and Equivalence
Recognition and Equivalence services are carried out within Council of Higher Education since 1983, in order to determine equivalents of associate, bachelor’s and master’s degree diplomas from international higher education institutions in higher education system of our country.
Equivalence procedures are carried out within the scope of Convention on the Recognition of Documents Related to Recognition of Higher Education European Region (Lisbon Convention), Higher Education Law No. 2547 and the Regulation on the Recognition and Equivalence of International Higher Education Diplomas.
RECOGNITION: Acceptance by Council of Higher education that an international higher education institution and a relevant program of this institution are authorized to give academic degrees. Higher education institution which gives the diploma should be authorized by competent authorities of the country in which it operates, to give academic diplomas and degrees and there should be accreditation and quality assurance processes that are transparent, accessible and sustainable.
EQUIVALENCE: It is the determination of equivalence of associate degree, undergraduate and master’s diplomas obtained from overseas higher education institutions and programs to Associate degree, Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees awarded by higher education institutions in Turkey in terms of achievements in related education level. Academic level of graduated higher education program, the degree and the qualification, the total of national credits and/or ECTS required for graduation are evaluated in terms of knowledge, skills and competencies that need to be gained.
Diploma Equivalence Certificate: Those who want to perform professions according to their graduated International Higher Education program and those who graduated from health fields (compulsory) and who want to have a Master’s or PhD education in Turkey can use this document.
Graduation Recognition Certificate: Only those who want to document “Higher Education Graduation” as a result of evaluation of academic degrees without evaluation of vocational achievements.
For Diploma Equivalence and Graduation Recognition documents, pre-applications must be made at the following web site addresses.
Turkish citizens: https://www.turkiye.gov.tr/yok-denklik-basvurusu
Foreign nationals: http://denklikbasvuru.yok.gov.tr/denklik/yu-denklik-basvuru-form
Institution Recognition Certificate: It is the document which is prepared by Council of Higher Education for the recognition of a foreign higher education institution. It can also be obtained via E-government: http://okultanima.yok.gov.tr
Recognition Office for Higher Education Institutions
It is the office that responds to information requests from international stakeholders, which conducts research and reporting on the recognition of countries’ educational systems, accreditation of higher education institutions, diplomas and degrees from relevant institutions, and recognition of their academic or professional qualifications.
ENIC-NARIC Turkey Office
NARIC (National Academic Recognition Information Centers) and ENIC (European Network of Information Centers) networks, which were merged by the Lisbon Recognition Convention Committee in 2004, operate under the name of ENIC-NARIC country offices and exchange information on issues such as the recognition of academic and professional qualifications, quality assurance in higher education, use and dissemination of Bologna process tools and academic mobility, and produce international policies. Turkey ENIC-NARIC office has been continuing its activities since 2003 under Council of Higher Education. Click for details: https://www.enic-naric.net/turkey.aspx
Detailed information about recognition and equivalence services can be found at https://denklik.yok.gov.tr/.
CoHE EQUIVALANCE BANK ACCOUNT
Ziraat Bankası A.Ş.-ANKARA KAMU
KURUMSAL ŞUBESİ
For Sample Petition for Recognation of Higher Education Institutions
Recognition and Equivalance Videos
Scholarships
Scholarships
For students who want to study with a scholarship in Turkey; there are various scholarship options including scholarships provided by Republic of Turkey, scholarships provided by students’ own states, scholarships offered by various national and international institutions and organizations, scholarships of universities. The opportunities and amounts offered by the scholarship institutions vary. Some of these institutions also cover the cost of transportation from your country to Turkey. The amount of monthly scholarships also varies according to the level of education of international students.
You can review which scholarships are available on web page of the university and get general information on details page. In addition, there are also scholarship programs provided by Turkish Scholarships and Council of Higher Education (CoHE).
CoHE Scholarship for International Students
It is aimed for international students at undergraduate and graduate levels in countries signing protocols with the Council of Higher Education. If students who are admitted in Turkish higher education programs do not have Turkish Proficiency Certificate, a one year language preparation is offered to the students.
For more information about YÖK Scholarship Click here
Turkey Scholarships
In addition to providing financial support, Turkey Scholarships allow international students to be placed in the university in their intended application program. With this feature, it differs from other scholarship programs in the world. The aim of Turkey Scholarships is to ensure that students benefit from social and cultural activities during their time in Turkey as well as university education. This Scholarship Program also covers the needs of students such as accommodation and health insurance during the education period.
For more information about Turkey Scholarships Click here