The Academicians’ Perspective on the Challenges Facing Higher Education in Turkey

This study explores various challenges facing higher education in Turkey. While several studies done in the past highlight a number of challenges of Turkish universities, those challenges were often not articulated well. In this study, we made an attempt to provide a framework for understanding the major problems and challenges Turkish universities have been struggling with. Some of the challenges discussed in this study are rooted in the perception and assumption that higher education institutions are a gateway to the job market. Although this perception is partially true, the real purpose of higher education is to provide the students with various critical thinking skills so that they can make informative decisions and address the challenges they may encounter once they graduate. In this research, the key issues associated with challenges Turkish universities are struggling with are investigated and presented using academic research, and the assessments and observations of the authors of this study.