Market Intelligence Brief for Turkey now available

Situated at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa, Turkey is a geopolitically strategic partner. More than half of its 83 million inhabitants are under the age of 32, and the population grows by 1.5 per cent annually. It has both the youngest and fastest-growing population in Europe, making it an important growth market for international education. While 2020 has brought some serious economic challenges for the country, such as a weak currency and high inflation, Turkey is increasingly becoming a location for international business. Students looking for a competitive advantage are therefore likely to choose an English-speaking location for their international studies.

Education is very centralised in Turkey, and state schools have little autonomy to cope to local needs. Local pre-tertiary schools are struggling to cope with rural to urban migration and the influx of Syrian refugees. However, literacy is high among those aged 15-24 and upper secondary attainment is high at nearly triple the OECD average. Turkey is home to 207 universities and tertiary education at public institutions is free of charge, but Turkey is lacking the capacity to meet growing demand. This has resulted in the increasing popularity of distance learning: about three million of the seven million students enrolled in higher education are studying on distance courses.

This lacking capacity for HE is likely to continue to encourage Turkish students to look abroad for their studies. Some 45,000 Turkish students go abroad for study every year. While the US has traditionally been the top destination, its attractiveness has been waning due to an unfavourable political climate. The UK has a major opportunity to draw more Turkish students away from the US, and competition with Canada, Australia, Germany and China is increasing.

In this Market Intelligence Brief, explore the demographics, economics and education system of Turkey. With a growing population, lacking tertiary capacity and demand for English-speaking workers, Turkey will continue to be an important education partner for the UK.

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The Market Intelligence Brief is designed to provide you with an overview of a particular country. Using the latest data from the most reliable sources, it represents a window onto the country's education system and student population as well as the economic, demographic and social factors that shape its higher education sector. The new 2020 series covers not only updated analysis on macro-economic and socio-economic indicators, but also provides a full picture of the education market of a given country.

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