Education FAQs

All refugees and asylum-seekers have the right to education and may enroll in Turkish schools after they have been issued by the Turkish authorities with an international protection identification document bearing the foreigner identification number.

Children have a right to go to school. Adults can also benefit from free language and skills training courses offered by the Ministry of National Education’s Public Education Centres.  Refugees and asylum seekers can also enroll in Turkish universities, but are required to pay tuition fees (please note that the tuition fee waiver announced by the Council of Ministers only applies to students from Syria).

It is important for children to attend school, no matter how long you expect to stay in Turkey! We advise you to enroll your children in school as soon as possible.

No matter how long you expect to stay in Turkey, it is important for your children to attend school. Even if you hope to be resettled to another country or to go back to your country, it is important that you and your family use the time in Turkey to develop the skills that will help your children integrate socially and academically into a new education system. The longer your children are out of school, the more difficult this becomes.

In addition to the educational benefits, attending school will help your children heal from the effects of displacement. Having a regular routine (by going to school or language classes daily) provides children and youth with stability. Attending school also creates a focus on the future, rather than what happened in the past and the situations that led to you and your family seeking assistance in Turkey.

 

You will need to enroll your children in schools that are in the city in which you are registered. You will need to apply to the Provincial Directorate of National Education (PDoNE) with the international protection identification document bearing foreigner ID number; and certificate of residence obtained from mukhtars.

If you have any documents showing that your child attended school in another country, please also take that with you. If the documentation is not available, Provincial Education Commissions are responsible for determining the grade into which your child will be placed.  This may be done through discussions with the parents and/or a written or oral test to be completed by your child. Based on this assessment your child may be enrolled in a grade that is lower than the last grade they attended in another country.  This is done in order to help your child transition to the Turkish curriculum and avoid any undue academic stress.

The PDoNE is responsible for identifying the school into which your child will be placed. As far as is possible, they will try to place your child in a school close to where you live, however this is not always possible.

Please note: Refugees and asylum-seekers from countries other than Syria may only enroll in Turkish public schools; only persons from Syria may enroll in Temporary Education Centres.

If there is an ASAM or HRDF office in the city in which you live, they can assist you.

International protection applicants and status holders can attend university in Turkey. Students wishing to enroll in Turkish universities should have the following documentation available:

• International protection identification document (bearing the foreigner ID number starting with “99”)
• Proof of having completed Grade 12 (either in Turkey or in another country)

○      If you completed secondary school in a country other than Turkey, you should obtain a certificate of equivalence from the Accreditation Unit of the PDoNE in the province in which you are registered. This document states that your high school diploma is recognized as being equivalent to a Turkish high school diploma.

○      If you have completed high school (Grade 12) in another country but do not have any proof of high school graduation, you may approach the Accreditation Unit of the PDoNE to request that they administer a written or verbal examination to determine whether you have the knowledge and skills expected of someone who has completed Grade 12.

• Results of the Foreign Students Examination (YOS) administered by the university in which you wish to enroll.
• Proof of proficiency in the language of instruction of the course in which you will enroll.

○      Courses taught in Turkish: Universities may ask that you take the “Foreign Language Examination” (YDS) or have completed a B2 or C1 level TOMER programme. Students who graduated from Turkish high schools are exempt from this requirement.

○      Courses taught in English: Have proof of language competence (YDS examination or IELTS / TOEFL certificate).

International protection applicants and status holders who completed Grade 12 in a Turkish public school should sit for the Foreign Students Examination (YOS) in order to gain admission to a Turkish university.

The YOS application fee is approximately 50 USD. YOS application fees must be paid at each university at which you submit an application. It is therefore important to research different universities and make informed decisions about where you wish to study and what course of study you wish to undertake. Information on study programmes and admissions requirements are available on university websites. Information on applications from foreign students also appear on the websites.

 

Please note that international protection applicant and status holder students are considered “foreign students” by universities; and higher tuition fees may apply for foreign students.

Yes. Turkish classes are offered by Public Education Centres (Halk Egitim Merkezi) free of charge. Please approach your local Public Education Centre to register for a class – you will need your international protection identification document bearing the foreigner ID number starting with “99”.

Turkish classes begin with basic Turkish (A1 level course) for which no prior knowledge of Turkish is needed; more advanced A2 and B1 courses are also available. Classes are opened when there are 12 or more people requesting enrolment in a class. Classes may therefore not start immediately on the date on which you request enrolment if there is an insufficient number of participants.

Financial assistance for education is available through the Conditional Cash Transfer for Education (CCTE) programme implemented through the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Services (MoFLSS), Ministry of National Education (MoNE), Turkish Red Crescent (TRC) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). All refugees, regardless of nationality, can benefit from this assistance.

 

Enrolment in the CCTE programme is conditional on families having at least one child of school age (kindergarten to Grade 12) who is attending school regularly and the families meeting the financial assistance eligibility criteria. More information on the CCTE programme and eligibility criteria can be found here:

 

http://unicef.org.tr/files/editorfiles/ccte_brosur_EN_010817_printer(4).pdf (English)

http://unicef.org.tr/files/editorfiles/ccte_brosur_TR_010817_printer(1).pdf (Turkish)

http://unicef.org.tr/files/editorfiles/ccte_brosur_AR_010817_printer(5).pdf (Arabic)

 

To get more information on eligibility, application procedures and to submit an application, refugees should approach Social Assistance and Solidarity Foundation (SASF) offices or a TRC Service Centre in their province of residence.

Enrolment in Turkish schools

Parents should approach the Provincial Education Directorate (PED) in order to request that their child be enrolled in a Turkish school.

The following documents are required to enroll in a Turkish school:

–           Foreigners’ Identification Number (99 number)

–           Registration on the MERNIS (Nufus) database system – residential address information

 

If you have any records of your child’s previous educational history, these should also be taken to the Provincial Education Directorate.  The Provincial Education Directorate will decide (i.) the grade into which the child will be placed, based on his/her previous educational history and abilities, as well as his/her age and (ii.) the school where the child will be enrolled.

If you do not have any information on your child’s previous educational history (or if they are enrolling in school for the first time), education officials may conduct a short interview or written test to help decide the grade into which your child will be enrolled.

If you have any records of your current residential address, it may be useful to provide this information to ensure placement to the nearest school with available space. The document showing your residence address can be obtained from the mukhtar free of charge.

It is not necessary for a child to be able to speak Turkish before enrolling in a school. Children cannot be denied access to school if they are unable to speak Turkish.

Financial assistance for education is available through the Conditional Cash Transfer for Education (CCTE) programme implemented through the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Services (MoFLSS), Ministry of National Education (MoNE), Turkish Red Crescent (TRC) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). All refugees, regardless of nationality, can benefit from this assistance.

 

Enrolment in the CCTE programme is conditional on families having at least one child of school age (kindergarten to Grade 12) who is attending school regularly and the families meeting the financial assistance eligibility criteria. More information on the CCTE programme and eligibility criteria can be found here:

 

http://unicef.org.tr/files/editorfiles/ccte_brosur_EN_010817_printer(4).pdf (English)

http://unicef.org.tr/files/editorfiles/ccte_brosur_TR_010817_printer(1).pdf (Turkish)

http://unicef.org.tr/files/editorfiles/ccte_brosur_AR_010817_printer(5).pdf (Arabic)

 

To get more information on eligibility, application procedures and to submit an application, refugees should approach Social Assistance and Solidarity Foundation (SASF) offices or a TRC Service Centre in their province of residence.

 

Syrian high school graduates wishing to enroll in a Turkish university should ensure that they have the following:

–           Foreigners’ Identification Number issued by DGMM  (99 number)

–           Proof of having completed Grade 12

• If you completed secondary school in Syria, you should obtain a certificate of equivalence from the Accreditation Unit of the Provincial Education Directorate in the province in which you are registered. This document states that your high school diploma is recognized as being equivalent to a Turkish high school diploma.
• If you completed secondary school at a Temporary Education Centre in Turkey in 2015 or 2016, you may be required to register for the Open High School examination in order to receive a document certifying that you have completed the 12th Grade.  Students who failed the YOLYDS/ GEMYDS examinations in 2015 and 2016 can also enroll in the Open High School in order to receive a 12th grade certificate.

–           Results of the Foreign Students Examination (YOS) administered by the university in which you wish to enroll.

–           Demonstrate that you are proficient in the language of instruction of the course in which you will enroll.

• Courses taught in Turkish:  Universities may ask that you take the “Foreign Language Examination” (YDS) or have completed a B2 or C1 level TOMER programme. Students who graduated from Turkish high schools are exempt from this requirement.
• Courses taught in English: Have proof of language competence (YDS examination or IELTS / TOEFL certificate).

 

There are websites that provide information on the dates on which YOS examinations will be held in different universities

Turkish language courses are offered free of charge by Public Education Centres (Halk Egitim Merkezi). Halk Egitim courses are usually offered to adults and youth over the age of 14, however language courses may also be attended by younger adolescents.

Temporary Education Centres offer 15 hours of Turkish instruction per week.

 

Persons wishing to attend university must complete an academic language programme (TOMER) and must obtain a C1 level certificate (there are 6 levels: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2).  TOMER courses may be expensive if paid for by the student. UNHCR and YTB offer scholarships for year-long higher education preparation programmes that lead to the award of TOMER-certified certificates of proficiency.  Applications are announced in September/ October of each year.

 

There are several online language learning resources.  The Yunus Emre Institute (YEI) has also online Turkish courses starting from A1 level to C1 level. The YEI’s “Distance Turkish Instruction Portal” aims to teach Turkish regardless of time and place due its flexible structure. You can find more information and register for the programme on the Yunus Emre Institute website.  Anadolu University also offers free-online Turkish language classes from beginner level.