Improving Gender Equality in Higher Education in Turkey

Women’s representation in education-especially in higher education- is an important part of broader gender equity discussions. The gender imbalance in education is not a new issue; and Turkey is no exception. In fact, this has been the subject of an ongoing debate for years throughout the world. Governments from all around the world try to enhance gender equity in education, along with other facets of the issue, such as economical, social, work, etc. Since its inception, Turkey’s largest distance education provider Anadolu University, even though it is not an intended institutional policy, contribute to enhance the equal representation of both men and women in higher education. The study specifically aimed at to assess how gender ratio has evolved over 32 years, whether spatial clustering exists within the gender data around the country, and to what extent women were represented in higher education programs. To answer these queries, gender ratio datasets were examined using visual (mapping) and spatial cluster analyses. Findings support that, distant programs of the university have helped more women participate in higher education programs across the country over the years, leading to relatively more normalized distribution of gender in education across the geographical regions. Findings are encouraging for the University administration towards tailoring programs to attract more women, and the disadvantaged groups into the academic programs. Also, fee and payment structures of the courses can be re-aligned to better serve disadvantaged regions of the country. In addition, institutions all around the world providing mass distance education can review Anadolu University’s cost and program structure to create their own structures to enhance their gender equality issues in education.