YÖK 100/2000 Bursiyerlerinin Mevcut Durumu: Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Sağlık Bilimleri Enstitüsü Doktora Öğrencilerinin Deneyimleri

Abstract

Objective: Turkey’s Council of Higher Education (CoHE) has started a funding program (CoHE 100/2000 Scholarship Program) since the Spring semester of 2017 to support selected PhD students throughout Turkey. However, this funding program has some fundamental contradictions with the regulations of both Dokuz Eylul University Graduate School of Health Sciences (DEU-GSHS) and the requirements of ORPHEUS (Organization of Education in Biomedicine and Health Sciences in the European System) label awarded to DEU-GSHS in 2015. Consequently, the contradictions create a relatively stressful PhD process for these selected students. The aim of this study was to understand DEU-GSHS CoHE 100/2000 scholarship holders’ opinions and expectations, as well as the conflicts on regulations they come across during their studies. Methods: Twenty-one CoHE 100/2000 students of DEU-GSHS filled out a survey that consists of 17 statements alongside their opinions on the subject. Results: Most students were aware of the conflicts among the institutional regulations, creating a stressful PhD environment for most of the participants. We believe that assignment of a student representative to be in charge of conveying those problems to authorities would be the best way to solve most of the issues mentioned throughout the article. Additionally, amelioration of career counselling, organization of regular meetings and providing the flexibility to extend the scholarship duration could improve PhD students’ current conditions. Conclusion: This study reveals the urgent need of harmonizing the regulations of all the associated institutions involved in the PhD process of CoHE 100/2000 bursars.