International Student Mobility and Educational Tourism

The root of the word university comes from universe. Therefore, a university is obligated to keep its doors open to all people who wish to receive an education and produce science, regardless of religion, language, race, ethnicity, or color.

The education provided at a university trains qualified individuals not just for a specific society, nation, or country, but for all of humanity.

The science produced at a university is also placed at the service of all humanity. By virtue of their mission, universities are institutions that do not engage in any discrimination and operate according to universal values and criteria.

Humanity has reached its current state from primitive times through the guidance of ideas developed and scientific knowledge produced in universities.

No matter where they are in the world, university campuses are living spaces for multinationalism, multiculturalism, multilingualism, multi-ethnicity, and every other type of diversity, plurality, and difference. Since science is universal, what could be more natural than for universities, which are the centers of scientific production, to possess the characteristic of universality?

Intellectual interaction and the sharing of scientific knowledge also ensure that people all over the world become aware of each other's existence, communicate, and integrate.

The diversity, plurality, and recognition and acceptance of differences on university campuses have a positive impact globally. The tolerance of diversity and differences to coexist forms the basis for solving many of the world's problems.

Therefore, diversity and plurality on university campuses are important for the spread of tolerance, the establishment of peace, the embedding of democratic understanding, and the creation of a more peaceful world.

On the other hand, international student mobility means a form of tourism. All countries in the world take educational tourism seriously in this regard. When you go to any university in any country, the first thing that catches your attention is the diversity of language, religion, race, and color on campus.

No one asks why they are here, finds it strange, excludes them, or marginalizes them. Everyone knows that they are valuable guests of that country who must be protected.

International students are an important source of income for our country. We all know that our country allocates significant resources for its promotion at the international level, and we see the effort shown in this direction. It is important for the country's outbound tourism mobility to gain momentum in order to strengthen international prestige, for the country to gain strength within the global economy, to ensure social welfare, and to increase social and cultural interaction.

Whoever holds any ideological or political view, everyone must agree on this point. It is important to address international student mobility from this perspective.

While this is the case, unfortunately, some political circles in our country have recently launched smear campaigns against our international students. It is not easy to understand the reason for this.

Making generalizations based on isolated incidents harms our universities and damages the country's image. If there is a problem somewhere, the well-intentioned attitude is to report the issue to the authorized units without generalizing it and to make an effort for its resolution.

Another point is the confusion between international students and asylum seekers or migrants. Our international students come to our country to receive educational services. There is both a contribution to increasing the quality of education and science in our universities and a significant transfer of foreign currency to the country. They are our guests.

When they complete their education and return to their own countries, each of them continues to contribute as a cultural ambassador for our country. We should only be proud of our international students who receive education at universities in Turkey and spread across the globe.

Instead of trying to drive them away from our country with smear campaigns, we should all protect them together and encourage them to come to our country.

But on the other hand, if this issue is on the agenda of political circles or the media, it would not be right to attribute the matter entirely to bad intentions and close the case. Let us also take a look at ourselves. Specifically, we should definitely encourage the arrival of international students to our country and increase our efforts in this direction.

This aspect of our higher education policies needs to be strengthened. For this, it is primarily important to strengthen the academic staff of our universities to a level capable of providing education at an international standard. Improving the research and scientific infrastructure conditions of universities is important at this point.

On the other hand, there are currently over 200 universities in our country. Some of these are located in Anatolian cities. Opening universities, especially in regions that have not yet completed their development process, is important in terms of accelerating the development process.

However, it is important for maximizing benefits that the character, educational format, research, and scientific infrastructure of each university be shaped by taking into account the conditions, needs, and socioeconomic and sociocultural structure of the region where it is located.

The conditions of the region where each university is located and the character of the university must also be taken into account when admitting international students to our universities. Therefore, giving priority to universities located in large cities for international student admission, and keeping universities in other regions under constant observation to ensure the flow of international students in a planned manner depending on their development processes, can largely prevent the occurrence of potential problems.

In conclusion, the admission of international students to our universities is of great importance both for the country's economic development and for social and cultural interaction at a universal level. Instead of making generalizations based on isolated problems, getting to the root of the problem and creating solution proposals would be a more sincere and meaningful contribution. Encouraging our universities that have suitable academic staff qualifications and research and scientific infrastructure to admit international students will make a positive contribution to our country's development in various aspects.