The Relationship Between Turkiye's Higher Education Student Mobility and the International Migration System

Ozey E., ERKAN B., Kahraman S.

YUKSEKOGRETIM DERGISI, cilt.15, sa.3, ss.555-571, 2025 (ESCI, TRDizin)

Özet

This study focuses on the relationship between international migration flows to and from Turkiye and higher education student mobility within the context of Turkiye's higher education internationalization process. In this regard, the distribution of international students in Turkiye over the years and their source countries are examined in detail. Data on international migration and student mobility are analyzed based on socio-economic indicators, development and democracy indices, and migration variables, employing hierarchical regression and two-step clustering analyses.As a result of the analyses, the countries included in the study were grouped into six different clusters according to the identified variables. Notably, one of these clusters consists of countries in which Turkish identity, strong neighborhood ties, language, religion, and cultural similarities are prominent; these countries are also among the leading senders of students to Turkiye. The findings reveal that Turkiye does not attract students evenly from all regions but, unlike Western countries, exhibits a more regional focus. The reasons for this regional orientation in Turkiye have not been sufficiently addressed in the existing literature. Therefore, this study also analyzes how the conditions of the source countries targeting Turkiye shape this situation. In addition, similarities are observed between the countries from which Turkiye receives and sends migrants and the countries involved in student mobility. This suggests that migration and student mobility processes are shaped by similar dynamics and that these two forms of mobility are mutually interactive. Although higher education policies aim to be shaped within a broad global perspective, in practice, regional factors-such as the dissolution of the USSR, the Arab Spring, and the Syrian crisis leading to increased mobility in the Middle East and subsequent student mobility linked to migration-have become the primary drivers of these policies. Turkiye's focus on regional connections in its higher education policies risks narrowing its internationalization perspective. In order for Turkiye to fully benefit from the internationalization of higher education, it must move beyond being merely a regional attraction hub and develop higher education institutions that contribute to its human capital at a significant level.