Sevda Karaca Sharply Criticizes the Commercialization of Turkish Universities

In mid-July 2026, the crisis in Turkey's private higher education system has once again returned to the headlines. Sevda Karaca, the Gaziantep representative from the Labor Party (EMEP), sharply criticized the performance of foundation (private) universities during a press conference at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM). Pointing to the dismissal of more than 150 university professors at the end of the academic year, she stated that these institutions have turned into "diploma sales centers" instead of producing science [1][2].

The Crisis of Professor Dismissals and Job Security According to Karaca's statements, with the arrival of the summer period, many foundation universities in Istanbul, including "Arel," "Maltepe," "Beykent," and "Aydin" universities, have not renewed the contracts of their professors. She emphasized that most of these professors worked in the fields of social sciences, communications, and arts—areas that the owners of these universities do not consider "profitable" [3]. Karaca called this action an "academic massacre" and noted that professors are viewed as "cost items" that must be eliminated to increase the bottom line profit [4].

University or a Tool for Financial Balancing? One of the harshest parts of Karaca's speech referred to the financial abuse by the owners of these universities. Stating that "universities are not places for laundering the accounting books of capitalists," she noted that although these institutions must legally be non-profit, they effectively act as tools for the financial and tax management of large parent companies [1][2]. She added that the pressure and tyranny that these "patrons" (big employers) exercise in their factories against workers has now spread to academic environments, putting professors under pressure [3].

Double Pressure on Students and Families Karaca further pointed to the clear contradiction between the skyrocketing tuition fees and the decline in the quality of educational services. While foundation universities collect heavy tuitions from families, they keep professors' salaries at a minimum level and destroy their job security [1]. She criticized the Council of Higher Education (YÖK) for remaining silent in the face of these injustices and the "witch hunt" against protesting students and critical professors instead of supervising them [3].

Ethical Cases and Suppression of Critics The MP also referred to the specific case of Professor "Feryal Saygılıgil," who faced pressure and eventual dismissal after attempting to investigate allegations of sexual harassment at Arel University. Karaca emphasized that universities should be the cradle of critical thinking and ethical security instead of covering up truths and suppressing those seeking justice [2][4]. The Labor Party of Turkey has announced that it will follow up on this issue through parliamentary inquiries so that the government and the Ministry of National Education are held accountable for this situation.