International Students in Turkey: Migration and Mobility as Competing Frameworks of Analysis

Executive Summary

According to official figures, international university students in Turkey now number over 300,000, making Turkey the eighth most popular destination for international students globally according to UNESCO. International university students have become an increasingly significant percentage of foreigners living in the country. This analysis presents eye-opening figures regarding international students in Turkey, underlining some important trends. First, the number of international students studying in Turkey grew from just under 50,000 in 2013 to over 300,000 in 2023—a roughly sixfold increase over a decade. Second, Syria is the top country of origin for international students by a significant margin. Third, the number of international students from other top countries has also grown significantly over the past decade, with the number of international students from each of the top ten countries growing between 250% and 5,000% over the past decade. Although further research is required to shed light on the various country-specific factors attracting foreign students to (or pushing them away from) universities in Turkey, the preliminary findings indicate that domestic conditions in students’ home countries and these countries’ evolving relationships with Turkey are important factors influencing these trends. This analysis further explores how discussions of international students diverge under the competing frameworks of mobility and migration, underlining how these different framings draw our attention to different research questions and policy dimensions.

Introduction 

There is growing alarm in Turkey at present over a large increase in the number of young people from prestigious high schools moving abroad for university education and the uptick in university graduates emigrating to Europe and North America under sundry skilled-labor schemes. Adding to this alarm are surveys indicating that a desire to leave Turkey is widely shared among young people of all socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds.1 Less discussed—until very recently—is the rapidly growing number of international students coming to Turkey, the various factors that draw them, and their experiences as students, workers, and foreigners in a country where both migration and transnational mobility are increasingly objects of public scrutiny. According to official figures, international university students now number over 300,000,2 making Turkey the eighth most popular destination for international students globally and a leading destination in the Global South,3 and positioning university students as an increasingly significant percentage of foreigners living in the country.

Conclusions and Further Questions 

In order to have a thorough discussion, it is important to be mindful of the agency of international students in Turkey and to remember that the “student” category—like all social categories—is complex and heterogeneous. In this analysis, we aimed to underline how frameworks of migration and mobility shape how we understand and address current issues shaping international higher education. These frameworks also draw our attention to the normative dimensions of policy research as they facilitate further questions. Should Turkey’s relationship with its international students be entirely transactional as if with consumers? Does Turkey owe foreign graduates a feasible path to migration or, at the very least, one with transparent and consistently enforced guidelines? Should higher education be the only feasible migration path for youth from the Global South wanting to live or work in Turkey, especially as some low-quality, private universities seem to be increasingly profiting from their facilitation of student residency?