Turkey

Why Turkey

Turkey has become one of the world's largest education hubs: YÖK reports nearly 350,000 international students from more than 200 countries, placing the country sixth worldwide on this measure.

For applicants from Russia and the CIS, Turkey combines geographic proximity, a secular European-style higher education system, and living costs noticeably below Western Europe.

Türkiye Bursları: what to know upfront

Türkiye Bursları is the government scholarship administered by YTB (Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities). It covers tuition, a monthly stipend, accommodation, health insurance, and flights on arrival and after graduation. Candidates apply themselves through the YTB portal, and there is no separate application fee.

The point people most often learn too late: every scholarship holder must complete a one-year Turkish language course — regardless of the language the degree itself is taught in. Even on an English-taught programme, that Turkish year is mandatory, with a C1 level expected at the end.

Application windows change from cycle to cycle, so we deliberately do not publish dates here: check them directly on turkiyeburslari.gov.tr before preparing documents.

Visa: an important warning

There are two stages: first a student visa (öğrenci vizesi) from a Turkish mission in your country, then a student residence permit (öğrenci ikamet izni) applied for after arrival through the e-ikamet system.

One warning worth stating plainly: visa-free entry available to Russian citizens is for tourism only and does not confer the right to study. Arriving as a tourist and converting status locally is not a route — the student visa is arranged in advance.

UNIPROFI in Turkey

We are launching the Turkey direction with the same approach that already works for China: working from a specific university's actual requirements rather than restating general articles.

If Turkey interests you, write to us — we will tell you where this direction stands today and how we can already help.