Council of State rejects abolishment of coefficient system

The 8th Chamber of the Council of State has ruled to retain a university admission system that makes it more difficult for graduates of vocational schools to enroll in a program of their choice.

The court decided to block a decision issued by the Higher Education Board's (YÖK) General Council in July after the İstanbul Bar asked it to ensure the system in which a lower coefficient is used to calculate the scores of graduates of vocational high schools on Turkey's university admission exam, the Student Selection Examination (ÖSS), remains in place. The system is considered by many a form of clear discrimination against graduates of vocational schools.

The Council of State stressed in its decision that the abolishment of the coefficient system would damage the integrity and harmony in the organization of the Turkish education system. “The abolishment goes beyond an aim to eliminate problems faced in the education system,” the decision notes. The council also added that the move to remove the coefficient is against the laws and principle of equality and would lead to damage that is impossible to repair.

YÖK has the right to appeal against the decision.

YÖK's decision had been regarded a landmark move to eliminate inequality between graduates of vocational high schools and all other high schools in Turkey. The lower coefficient application was put in practice after the postmodern coup of Feb. 28, 1997 and is seen as its byproduct. The Feb. 28 military coup led to the closure of the Welfare Party (RP) on allegations that it was implementing Islamic policies and harbored a secret agenda aiming to turn Turkey into a theocracy. The lower coefficient system was introduced in an attempt to keep students from imam-hatip schools -- classified as vocational schools -- out of universities.

The system has been the subject of strong criticism in Turkey as is clearly unfair toward graduates of vocational high schools, including imam-hatip schools, which have an additional curriculum to provide religious education to students, who want to study at universities.

Civil society criticizes decision

Civil society organizations voiced their criticisms against the court ruling and expressed hope that YÖK would ensure the elimination of the coefficient system.

“There is no legal basis for this Council of State decision. It acted after the İstanbul Bar asked it to overturn YÖK's decision. But the authority to regulate this issue belongs to YÖK. This decision will cause chaos because no new regulation has been drawn up to replace the previous system. We hope YÖK will make another decision to eliminate this inequality because there is no going back on this issue,” said Hüseyin Korkut, the head of ÖNDER, a civil society group bringing together graduates of imam-hatip high schools against the Council of State decision.

Rıdvan Kaya, the chairman of the Freedom Association (Özgür-Der), termed the council's decision “unlawful,” and argued that it is a strong indication that the council prefers to make “ideological” decisions instead of “lawful” ones.

“This ruling has once again revealed the ideological stance of the Council of State. We will demonstrate against the ruling. This decision does not serve to benefit the public. It is merely an automatic reflex by the council to show intolerance against any move to eliminate injustice in the country,” Kaya said.

The abolishment of the coefficient system, which had been suggested many times in the past by well-known companies, including Koç Holding and Zorlu Holding, as a means to solve the problem of finding qualified staff, was also welcomed by the industrial sector. Since vocational school graduates faced difficulties in continuing their education at universities, companies have been unable to easily find employees.