Turkish Attempts to Internationalize Higher Education: A Comparative Case Study

• In Event: Virtual Mobility and Strategic Internationalization: Examining Digital Trends in Global Higher Education

Proposal

Introduction and Problem Statement
The internationalization of higher education has become a significant trend globally in 1990s driven by various factors including globalization, competition for talent, the neoliberal move towards privatization of higher education, and the need for academic institutions to enhance their global standing and educational quality in an era of international comparison and performance ranking. Turkey has made numerous reforms and marketization efforts in the pursuit of the internationalization in higher education over the last 2 decades, yet whether these attempts have reached their goals is still a subject of debate.
There is growing interest towards Turkish higher education institutions over time, however the international student enrollment are not seen satisfactory in the literature due to the ratio of international students to Turkish students being in steady decrease in the last decades (Çetinsaya, 2014). Also, there is scarce empirical research on the trends and challenges associated with the internationalization of higher education in the country. This paper aims to address this gap by examining the quantitative trends of international student enrollment and the perspectives of relevant university staff at two Turkish universities between 2013 and 2024. The findings of this paper will help inform policy decisions and practices on internationalization attempts of higher education systems around the world with similar contexts and routes, and contribute to the broader understanding of internationalization trends in higher education through an institution level comparative case study.

Literature Review
The higher education expansion, quality assurance, and centralization efforts in Turkey since 1980s with the establishment of the Council of Higher Education did not go hand in hand with internationalization efforts (Ericok & Arastaman, 2022; Özoğlu et al., 2015). It can be seen by considering that the steady increase of international student numbers in Turkish higher education since 1983, the ratio of international students to the total student numbers show fluctuation and is below desired levels shown by the educational authorities in the country (Çetinsaya, 2014).
Recent reform priorities on internationalization of the system started in 2010 by removing the Foreign Student Entrance Exam (YÖS) and giving flexibility to HEIs on rules and regulations governing international student enrollments. Efe & Özer (2022) argue that Turkey's involvement in the Bologna Process (EHEA) has also been crucial in enhancing the internationalization efforts, aiming to align Turkish higher education with European standards. However, empirical research showcased that there is still a lack of coherence in the internationalization strategies of HEIs and the reform agendas of the Council of Higher Education (Fındık 2016). Thus, while Turkey has made notable progress in the internationalization of its higher education system, significant challenges remain.

Data and Methods
The initial data for this study comes from Higher Education Information Management System governed by the Council of Higher Education of the Republic of Turkey. The statistical information disaggregates enrollment by nationality and gender in two Turkish universities, namely Middle East Technical University and Koç University. It will consist of data beginning with 2013-2014 academic year and ending with 2023-2024 academic year, in total 11 subsets. The rationale behind the time period selection is the limitation of data within the database, and the university sampling is conducted purposively by choosing the top two best performing Turkish universities where Middle East Technical University is ranked as the best public university and Koç University as the best private university in Turkey as of 2023-2024 academic year by Times Higher Education.
In addition to the statistical trend analysis, I will conduct interviews with the Student Recruitment Directorate staff from Koç University and International Students Office staff from Middle East Technical University regarding their insights on their institutions’ internationalization process over the years. This study then will follow an explanatory sequential design where the initial quantitative analysis will be supported and analyzed in light of the qualitative analysis of the interviews.
In terms of data analysis, quantitative part of the study will include an analysis of inbound international student trends in these two universities using OLS Regression Test on Stata and qualitative part of the study will include an analysis of the themes present in the interviews using reflexive thematic analysis using Nvivo.

Preliminary Findings and Results
Initial statistics show that in 2013-2014 academic year, while the international student enrolment in Koç University was observed as 182 (n=5,495) from 35 different nationalities, it was observed as 1,817 (n=32,727) from 82 different nationalities for Middle East Technical University. In 2023-2024, these numbers rose up to 838 (n=10,831) for Koç University from 78 different nationalities and 2,031 (n=32,392) for Middle East Technical University from 99 different nationalities. Thus, while the ratio of international students to total students in Koç University in 2013-2014 was 3% and in Middle East Technical University 5%, it is seen that 2023-2024 data yields 7% for Koç University and 6% for Middle East Technical University, showing that there was a breaking point along these 10 years causing such change in the comparative trend.
It seems that despite reform and marketization efforts, the internationalization efforts have not paid off for these best performing universities based on the ratios, for the public university in particular; nonetheless, the number of international students enrolled in both universities show a significant increase over time. It is expected that the qualitative data and analysis will yield explanations to this phenomenon by illustrating why institutional and national reform and marketization attempts worked or not.

Conclusion and the Significance of the Study
The study will provide a comprehensive analysis of the internationalization trends and challenges in Turkish higher education in the last decade. By examining international student enrollment and university staff insights, the research will shed light on the progress made and the obstacles encountered in Turkey's efforts to attract international students. The findings of this study will have several implications; they will contribute to a deeper understanding of the trends in internationalization of higher education in Turkey, provide valuable insights for policymakers and university administrators seeking to enhance their internationalization strategies, and contribute to the broader body of research in the field.

Author

• Talha Idiz, Columbia University, Teachers College