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Recognition of your foreign diploma in Turkey

For a diploma obtained abroad to be usable in Turkey for job applications, professional practice or postgraduate applications, it must go through the recognition and equivalence process of the Council of Higher Education (YÖK). This process actually starts long before graduation, when choosing a university: which school you study at, in which programme and under what conditions can directly affect how your application will be assessed later.

At Weroglobal Student, we guide you on this matter both before you go abroad and after you graduate. We would like to make clear from the outset that we do not provide legal advice and that the binding decision rests with YÖK; all our assessments are based on YÖK's current regulations.

Before going abroad

• Checking the YÖK recognition status of your target university and its position in international rankings
• Assessing whether your chosen programme is subject to special conditions in terms of equivalence
• Reviewing your own YKS result for programmes that require a minimum ranking
• Guidance on the documents you need to keep during your studies (visas, entry-exit records, course content)

The 2024 regulation: as summarised in the source

Our partner sources describe the regulation amendment published in the Official Gazette on 15.03.2024 and the procedures and principles announced on 29 March 2024 as follows:

• Graduates of all programmes at universities in the top 400 of the three international ranking organisations accepted by YÖK can obtain equivalence directly.
• At universities in the top 1000, no YKS requirement applies; files of law, medicine, dentistry and pharmacy graduates are examined individually on the basis of their transcripts.
• At universities outside the top 1000, those who will study these four programmes must achieve a certain YKS ranking: top 50,000 for medicine, top 80,000 for dentistry, top 100,000 for pharmacy (numerical) and top 125,000 for law (equal weight).

This summary is for information purposes only; the rules may change and each file is assessed separately by YÖK.

Application support after graduation

The application file usually includes the diploma and its notarised Turkish translation, the transcript, a curriculum document showing the course content of the programme studied, the passport, and visas and entry-exit records proving that you were abroad; YÖK may also request additional documents. We support you in preparing this file completely and consistently, checking the translations and following up on the process.

In the YÖK review, the programme's content and duration, the university's recognition and its accreditation status are taken into account. If a curriculum difference is identified, additional courses or exams may be required. In health professions, additional exams or professional body procedures may follow equivalence, while in engineering and architecture, registration with the relevant chamber may come into play. According to our sources, the process can take several months, so it is helpful to start your application early.

If you would like to review together the equivalence status of the programme you plan to study or have graduated from, you can contact our consultants.