PART 1

Aim, Scope, Basis, and Definitions of Terms

 

Aim

ARTICLE 1 – (1) The aim of this Directive is to regulate the principles regarding student transfers in the associate and bachelor’s degree programs of Middle East Technical University (METU).

 

Scope

ARTICLE 2 – (1) This Directive covers the provisions regarding the transfer of students between equivalent associate and bachelor’s degree programs of higher education institutions recognized for equivalence by METU and the Council of Higher Education (YÖK).

 

Basis

ARTICLE 3 – (1) This Directive has been prepared based on the Regulation on the Principles of Transferring Between Associate and Undergraduate Programs, Double Major, Minor Programs, and Course Credit Transfer Between Higher Education Institutions published in the Official Gazette numbered 27561 and dated April 24, 2010.

 

Definitions of Terms

ARTICLE 4 – (1) Wherever in this Directive the below terms appear, they shall be taken to refer to the following:

a) Diploma program: Higher education programs at faculties, schools, conservatories, vocational schools, or departments that grant students with an associate or bachelor’s degree diploma provided that they meet the specified qualifications.

b) Equivalent diploma program: Diploma programs with identical names or whose contents are determined to be similar by at least eighty percent (this decision is to be taken by the concerned administrative boards).

c) Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA): Weighted average grade of all the courses taken by a student from their first term (excluding their preparatory school grades) until the term when they intend to transfer to another program.

d) Concerned administrative board: Faculty administrative boards at Middle East Technical University.

e) Course Adjustment: When transferring between diploma programs, additional courses and applications required to adapt to the curriculum of the program being transferred to.

f) EPE: English Proficiency Exam conducted by METU School of Foreign Languages.

g) Quota: The predetermined and announced number of students.

h) Within-Institutional Transfer: Transfer of a student from one diploma program to another one at the same level within the same higher education institution.

i) Between Institutional Transfer: Transfer of a student from one higher education institution to another one at the same level.

j) METU: Middle East Technical University.

k) President: President of Middle East Technical University.

l) Senate: Senate of Middle East Technical University.

m) Base Score: The score of the lowest-ranking student placed in a diploma program within a higher education institution through a central exam conducted by ÖSYM.

n) Transfer: The situation where a student enrolled in a higher education institution becomes eligible to continue their education in another diploma program at the same level in accordance with the rules and regulations specified in this Directive.

o) Regulation: The YÖK Regulation for Student Transfer Between Associate Degree and Bachelor’s Degree Programs, Double Major and Minor Programs and Course Credit Transfer Between Institutions of Higher Education.

p) Higher Education Student Database (YÖKSİS): The central database of YÖK containing information about students enrolled in associate degree, bachelor’s degree, and graduate programs in all higher education institutions.

 

PART 2

General Principles

 

English Proficiency

ARTICLE 5 - (1) Applicants from outside METU are required to document their English proficiency during the application process.

(2) Applicants may present a valid score obtained in METU EPE or any other exam recommended by the School of Foreign Languages (SFL) and approved as equivalent by the Senate.

(3) The following procedures are applied for the transfer of the candidates who apply for the quotas for transfers through the Central Placement Examination Score from the institutions of higher education whose medium of instruction is either Turkish or partially a foreign language (30% English) and whose medium of instruction is entirely either English or another foreign language (French, Germany, etc.):

a) Provided that they apply to be transferred to the same department at METU, applicants who study at the Preparatory School or those who are in their first year in a higher education institution where the medium of instruction is Turkish or partially English (30%) are admitted to the Preparatory School at METU if they cannot provide a document proving their English proficiency. The maximum duration of study at the Preparatory School is one year if the student has already spent a year at the Preparatory School before; it is two years if the student has not been to the Preparatory School before. Applicants in their second year or more cannot be admitted to the Preparatory School at METU. Instead, they are required to provide a proficiency exam score approved by the METU Senate.

b) Provided that they apply to be transferred to a different department at METU from theirs, applicants studying in a higher education institution where the medium of instruction is Turkish or partially English (30%) and cannot provide a document proving their English proficiency are admitted to the Preparatory School at METU regardless of what year students they are. The maximum duration of study at the Preparatory School is one year if the student has already spent a year at the Preparatory School before; it is two years if the student has not been to the Preparatory School before.

c) Applicants studying at the Preparatory School or those who are in their first year in a higher educational institution where the medium of instruction is entirely English or another foreign language (French, German, etc.) are admitted to the Preparatory School at METU if they cannot provide a document proving their English proficiency. The maximum duration of study at the Preparatory School is one year if the student has already spent a year at the Preparatory School before; it is two years if the student has not been to the Preparatory School before. Applicants in their second year or more cannot be admitted to the Preparatory School at METU. Instead, they are required to provide a proficiency exam score approved by the METU Senate.

(4) The English proficiency of those who are citizens of countries where English is the official native language and who have completed their high school education (within the last three years) in a school where English has been the primary language of instruction is evaluated by the Administrative Board of the School of Foreign Languages (SFL). In such cases, the school must be located in a country where English is the official native language, and it must also be a high school attended by the citizens of that country. Those deemed suitable by the Administrative Board of SFL are registered into their undergraduate programs by the Registrar’s Office (ÖİDB).

 

Quota

ARTICLE 6 – (1) Transfer quotas are determined and announced within the framework of the concerned YÖK regulation.

(2) No between institutional transfer quotas are announced for the Spring Semester.

(3) The decision to announce within-institutional transfer quotas for the Fall and Spring Semesters is at the discretion of the relevant faculty administrative boards.

(4) No change in quotas or transfer between quotas is possible once the quotas have been announced.

(5) Leaving the quotas empty for academic concerns despite a sufficient number of applications is at the discretion of the relevant faculty administrative boards and department chairs.

 

Transfers

ARTICLE 7 – (1) Student transfers cannot be made in the preparatory school of associate and bachelor’s degree programs, the first semester and the last semester of associate degree programs, or the first two semesters and the last two semesters of bachelor’s degree programs.

 

Applications and Evaluations

ARTICLE 8 – (1) Transfer applications between diploma programs are made to the relevant faculties within the specified period indicated in the Academic Calendar.

(2) In addition to the conditions specified in this Directive, the university senate may establish additional criteria for the evaluation of transfer applications.

(3) The preliminary evaluation of applications is conducted by committees established by the concerned administrative boards within the framework of the principles determined by the university senate.

(4) Applications are evaluated by the relevant committees based on the criteria determined by the senate, taking into consideration the CGPA of the candidates and at least 40% of their Central Placement Examination (ÖSYS/YKS) score from the year they enrolled in higher education, according to the allocated quota.

(5) Transfer and placement into diploma programs is conducted upon the decision of the concerned faculty administrative boards.

(6) Being on leave of absence (having one’s registration frozen) does not hinder the right to apply for transfer.

 

Announcement of Results and Course Adjustment

ARTICLE 9 – (1) The admission of students to their new programs and their course adjustments are decided upon by the concerned faculty administrative board based on the recommendation of the department chair, and the results are announced by the relevant faculty.

(2) The concerned committees determine, in accordance with the principles set by the senate, in which year and semester of the program the student will be enrolled, taking into account the courses the student has taken before as well as the courses of the program they are transferring into. Through the course adjustment procedure, the additional courses the student needs to take and the courses they are exempt from are determined.

(3) Once the course adjustment procedures are completed by the relevant department and faculty boards for students whose transfer applications are accepted in accordance with this Directive, the Division of Student Affairs (ÖİDB) conducts the registration procedures, and the student’s updated information is recorded in the higher education student database (YÖKSİS).

(4) If a student whose transfer application has successfully been accepted decides to waive their transfer rights before the registration dates for the relevant term begin, their transfer procedures are canceled entirely.

 

PART 3

Within-Institutional Transfer

 

Quotas for Within-institutional transfers and the condition of base score

ARTICLE 10 – (1) Students at METU Ankara / Northern Cyprus Campuses may apply for transfer to other equivalent diploma programs within the university in accordance with within-institutional quotas determined by the concerned administrative boards.

(2) The within-institutional quota is determined by taking into consideration that it does not exceed 15 percent of the total student quota announced annually in the ÖSYM guide, and it is finalized by the concerned administrative boards.

(3) The within-institutional quota is the quota set by the concerned administrative board for undergraduate students at METU Ankara and Northern Cyprus Campuses who are successful in their current registered program and apply to an equivalent program.

(4) The within-institutional quotas are not allotted for the preparatory school, the first two semesters, and the last two semesters of bachelor’s degree programs.

 

Application requirements for the within-institutional quota

ARTICLE 11 – (1) Applicants must fulfill the following requirements to be eligible for within-institutional transfer.

a) At the time of application, the applicants must be registered in an equivalent program or be on leave of absence (but maintain their student status).

b) The applicants must have completed at least two semesters in their current program (excluding the English Preparatory School).

c) The applicants must have taken and passed all the required courses in the curriculum of their current program within the completed semesters. The minimum required passing grades are DD or an equivalent grade for credit courses, and S or an equivalent grade for non-credit courses. The application of students who have not taken all the courses in the curriculum of their program during the semesters they were registered, as well as the application of those who have failed in any of those courses (with the letter grades FF, FD, NA, U, I, W or an equivalent grade) will not be taken into consideration.

d) The CGPA of the applicants must be a minimum of 2.50 out of 4.00.

e) The applicants must have fulfilled other requirements, if any (interview, portfolio, etc.), of the program they wish to transfer to.

f) For international students applying for within-institutional transfer, it is a must that they have taken one of the exams specified in the international student admission criteria of METU undergraduate programs (such as SAT, GCE, etc.) in the year of their entry into the program and have met the required score criteria for the program they wish to transfer to.

 

Evaluation of within-institutional transfers

ARTICLE 12 – (1) The preliminary evaluation of applications is conducted by committees established by the concerned administrative boards within the framework of the principles determined by the university senate.

(2) Applications are evaluated based on the criteria determined by the university senate, by taking into consideration the candidates' CGPA and their performance in common courses, if any, in the program they wish to transfer to. Candidates deemed suitable are approved for transfer according to the allocated quotas.

 

Course adjustment in within-institutional transfers

ARTICLE 13 – (1) Once the transfer of a student to a new diploma program is approved, the equivalence of the courses they have taken and successfully completed in their previous diploma program is examined. The grades of the courses found equivalent are recorded in their transcript and added to their CGPA.

(2) For students whose within-institutional transfer has been approved, determining which courses they have taken and successfully completed in their previous program can be considered valid and credited is the responsibility of the concerned faculty administrative board following the recommendation of the relevant department chairs and also taking into consideration the curriculum of their newly transferred program. The principles regarding the inclusion of these valid courses in the calculation of the students’ GPA and CGPA scores are determined by the Senate.

(3) As part of the course adjustment procedures, the class and semester to which the students whose within-institutional transfer has been approved will be admitted in their newly transferred program are determined by the Faculty Administrative Board based on the total number of courses in the program and the course load per semester.

 

PART 4

Between Institutional Transfer

 

Between institutional transfer

ARTICLE 14 – (1) Between institutional transfer is conducted between equivalent diploma programs at higher education institutions based on quotas determined by the Council of Higher Education (YÖK).

 

Quotas for between institutional transfers

ARTICLE 15 – (1) Between institutional quotas are the quotas set by YÖK for successful students whose program is equivalent to the program they wish to transfer to.

(2) The equivalency of the programs is determined by the concerned administrative boards by recommendation of the department chairs, taking into consideration various factors such as the regular duration of study of each program, ÖSYM score types, curriculums of the programs, etc.

(3) Provided that they meet the application requirements, the following students are eligible for applying between institutional transfer:

a) Students with Turkish and TRNC citizenship studying in a higher education institution in Türkiye.

b) International students studying in a higher education institution in Türkiye.

(4) The between institutional quotas are not allotted for the preparatory school, the first two semesters, and the last two semesters of bachelor’s degree programs.

 

Application requirements for the between institutional quota

ARTICLE 16 – (1) Applicants must fulfill the following requirements to be eligible for between institutional transfer;

a) At the time of application, the applicants must be registered in an equivalent program or be on leave of absence (but maintain their student status).

b) The applicants must have completed at least two semesters in their current program (excluding the English Preparatory School).

c) The applicants must have taken and passed all the required courses in the curriculum of their current program within the completed semesters. The minimum required passing grades are DD or an equivalent grade for credit courses, and S or an equivalent grade for non-credit courses. The application of students who have not taken all the courses in the curriculum of their program during the semesters they were registered, as well as the application of those who have failed in any of those courses (with the letter grades FF, FD, NA, U, I, W or an equivalent grade) will not be taken into consideration.

d) The CGPA of the applicants must be a minimum of 2.50 out of 4.00 (or 75 out of 100).

e) The applicants must have fulfilled other requirements, if any (interview, portfolio, etc.), of the program they wish to transfer to.

f) For international students applying for between institutional transfer, it is a must that they have taken one of the exams specified in the international student admission criteria of METU Ankara Campus undergraduate programs (such as SAT, GCE, etc.) in the year of their entry into the program and have met the required score criteria for the program they wish to transfer to.

 

Transfer from higher education institutions abroad

ARTICLE 17 – (1) The transfer quota from higher education institutions abroad is determined by the university senate, ensuring it does not exceed half of the between institutional transfer quota.

(2) Applicants who wish to transfer from a higher education institution abroad must fulfill the following requirements;

a) At the time of application, the applicants must be registered in an equivalent program or be on leave of absence (but maintain their student status).

b) The applicants must have completed at least two semesters in their current program (excluding the English Preparatory School).

c) The applicants must have successfully passed all the courses they have taken within the curriculum of their current program.

d) The CGPA of the applicants must be a minimum of 2.50 out of 4.00 (or 75 out of 100).

e) The applicants must have fulfilled the other requirements, if any (interview, portfolio, etc.), of the program they wish to transfer to.

f) For international students applying from abroad, it is a must that they have taken one of the exams specified in the international student admission criteria of METU Ankara Campus undergraduate programs (such as SAT, GCE, etc.) in the year of their entry into the program and have met the required score criteria for the program they wish to transfer to.

(3) Application requirements for Turkish Citizens wishing to transfer from a higher education institution abroad are as follows;

a) For an applicant to be eligible for transferring from a higher education institution abroad to a program determined by YÖK and requiring a ranking of success according to the ÖSYS guide of the relevant year, the following is required: the university where the student is enrolled must be ranked within the top four hundred universities in world rankings according to at least three ranking organizations recognized by YÖK as of the year the student started higher education, and the applicant must meet the  grade requirements as well as semester/class requirements specified in the YÖK Rules and Regulation regarding student transfers.

b) If the applicant is enrolled in a higher education institution that is not among the top four hundred universities in world rankings, the following procedures are applied;

1) Applicants who completed their high school education in Türkiye must have taken the Central Placement Examination, and their ranking score obtained from the exam in the year they enrolled in their university must meet the minimum score required by the program they wish to transfer to.

2) Applicants who have completed at least the last two years of their high school education abroad must have successfully completed at least four semesters in the program they are enrolled in, excluding the Preparatory School. For students applying from abroad, it is a must that they have taken one of the exams specified in the international student admission criteria of METU Ankara Campus undergraduate programs (such as SAT, GCE, etc.) in the year of their entry into the program and have met the required score criteria for the program they wish to transfer to.

c) At the time of application, the applicants must be registered in an equivalent program as a student.

d) The applicants must have completed at least two semesters in their current undergraduate program. However, those who have completed at least the last two years of their high school education abroad must have successfully completed at least four semesters in their current undergraduate program, excluding the Preparatory School.

e) The applicants must have successfully passed all the courses they have taken within the curriculum of their current program.

f) The CGPA of the applicants must be a minimum of 2.50 out of 4.00 (or 75 out of 100).

g) The applicants must have fulfilled other requirements, if any (interview, portfolio, etc.), of the program they wish to transfer to.

h) Students with Turkish citizenship who wish to apply for a transfer from a higher education institution abroad and have completed their high school education in Türkiye or completed the last two years of their high school education abroad must meet the requirements determined by the relevant faculties.

(4) Students who have the base score required for admission to the relevant class of the diploma program at the higher education institution they wish to transfer to can apply for transfer without having to have successfully passed all the courses they have taken in higher education abroad. Such applications are evaluated in accordance with the principles determined by the university senate outside the quotas set for transfers from abroad.

(5) In applications from universities abroad, it is necessary for the higher education institution and the program where the applicant is enrolled to be recognized by YÖK as an institution authorized to grant associate or bachelor’s degree diplomas. Additionally, it is necessary for the relevant university in Türkiye, where the applicant wishes to transfer, to acknowledge that the diploma program in which the applicant is currently enrolled is equivalent to the associate or bachelor’s degree diploma program that they apply for.

(6) In transfer from higher education institutions abroad, the number of students who can transfer to each class of a program from the same institution abroad cannot exceed 15% of the quota set for transfers abroad for that class. When calculating the 15%, numbers below 1 are rounded up to 1. If the decimal part is less than 5, it is rounded down to the lower integer, and if it is 5 or more, it is rounded up to the next integer.

 

Evaluation of between institutional transfers and transfers from abroad

ARTICLE 18 – (1) The preliminary evaluation of applications is conducted by committees established by the concerned administrative boards within the framework of the principles determined by the university senate.

(2) Applications are evaluated based on the criteria determined by the university senate, by taking into consideration the candidates' CGPA and their performance in common courses, if any, in the program they wish to transfer to. Candidates deemed suitable are approved for transfer according to the allocated quotas.

 

Course adjustment in between institutional transfers and transfers from abroad

ARTICLE 19 – (1) Once the transfer of a student to a new diploma program is approved, the equivalence of the courses they have taken and successfully completed in their previous diploma program is examined. The grades of the courses found equivalent are recorded in their transcript and added to their CGPA.

(2) For students whose between institutional transfer has been approved, determining which courses (with grades of CC or higher, S or their equivalents) they have taken and successfully completed in their previous program can be considered valid and credited is the responsibility of the concerned faculty administrative board following the recommendation of the relevant department chairs and also taking into consideration the curriculum of their newly transferred program. The principles regarding the inclusion of these valid courses in the calculation of the students’ GPA and CGPA scores are determined by the Senate.

(3) During course adjustment for students whose between institutional transfer applications have been approved, course exemptions are determined based on the recognition of credits up to a maximum of half the total credit count of the curriculum of their newly transferred program.

(4) As part of the course adjustment procedures, the class and semester to which the students whose between institutional transfer has been approved will be admitted in their newly transferred program are calculated by the relevant department head according to the total number of courses in the program and the course load per semester and determined by the decision of the Faculty Administrative Board.

 

Special cases

ARTICLE 20 – (1) When public officials serving in permanent public services in public institutions and organizations are permanently reassigned elsewhere, they, together with their spouses and children, can be transferred to another institution without considering the quota, provided that they meet the following conditions. Their transfer must be conducted within one month from the beginning of the academic year for each semester, except for the final year or the last two semesters of the equivalent diploma program they will transfer to. Furthermore, the central placement examination score they obtained in the year they entered their currently registered diploma program must be higher than the base score of the diploma program they will transfer to as of the year they first enrolled in university.

(2) If a student enrolled in a higher education institution abroad wishes to apply for transfer because their parents, who are public officials on a foreign mission will move back to Türkiye due to the termination of their duties, or if their parents are workers who will repatriate to Türkiye, the following are required for the student’s transfer application: having completed at least one year in their currently registered program (excluding the foreign language preparatory class), and having successfully passed all of the end-of-year exams with a passing grade. The concerned administrative boards of the higher education institution the candidate wishes to transfer evaluate such special cases outside the quotas set for transfers from abroad.

(3) Applications of the children of foreign diplomats working in Türkiye to higher education institutions are evaluated by the administrative board of the institution applied to, regardless of the previously set quotas. If the application is accepted, the course adjustments are made for each student.

 

PART 5

Transfer with Central Placement Examination Score

(Transfers within Additional Article 1)

 

Transfer with central placement examination score

ARTICLE 21 – (1) The application schedule for student transfers, the principles regarding student quotas, and the procedures and principles of student transfers are determined by the Executive Board of the Council of Higher Education.

(2) In accordance with the procedures and principles, the applications of students are accepted upon the evaluation processes conducted by the relevant committees.

(3) In cases where the number of applications exceeds the previously determined quota, applicants are ranked starting from the one with the highest central placement examination (ÖSYS) score, and the transfer applications of candidates up to the quota number are accepted.

 

Application requirements for transfers with central placement examination score

ARTICLE 22 – (1) Applicants must fulfill the following requirements to be eligible for transfer with central placement examination score.

a) According to the procedures and principles determined by the Executive Board of the Council of Higher Education, applications of the students are evaluated by the concerned boards of faculties.

b) At the time of application, the applicants must be registered in an equivalent program or be on leave of absence (but maintain their student status).

c) The central placement examination score obtained by the applicant in the year of enrollment in their current program must be either equal or higher than the base score of the program they wish to transfer to in the same year.

d) Students placed into their programs based on their Vertical Transfer Examination (DGS) score can only apply for transfer to undergraduate programs that they are eligible to choose according to the DGS Guidebook.

e) Applicants must choose one program to apply for transfer.

f) Applicants who have been registered to another higher education institution by following the procedures of Transfer with Central Placement Examination Score (Additional Article 1) and wish to exercise their right to return in accordance with YÖK Additional Article 1 regulations must provide proof of English proficiency if it has been more than two years.

g) Students who have been registered to another higher education institution by following the procedures of Transfer with Central Placement Examination Score (Additional Article 1) while being a Preparatory School student at METU and wish to exercise their right to return in accordance with Additional Article 1 regulations will not be admitted into the Preparatory School upon their return. If they provide proof of English proficiency, they will be enrolled in their relevant diploma program.

 

Within-institutional transfer with central placement examination score

ARTICLE 23 – (1) Provided that the central placement examination score obtained by the applicant in the year of enrollment in their current program is either equal or higher than the base score of the program they wish to transfer to in the same year, they (except for Preparatory School students) can apply for transfer.

 

Between institutional transfer with central placement examination score

ARTICLE 24 – (1) Provided that the central placement examination score obtained by the applicant in the year of enrollment in their current program is either equal or higher than the base score of the program they wish to transfer to in the same year, they can apply for transfer. This includes Preparatory School students, as well.

 

Evaluation of transfers with central placement examination score

ARTICLE 25 – (1) The preliminary evaluation of applications is conducted by committees established by the concerned administrative boards within the framework of the principles determined by the university senate.

Course adjustment of transfers with central placement examination score

ARTICLE 26 – (1) The course adjustment of within-institutional transfers with central placement examination score is the same as the procedures of within-institutional transfers.

(2) The course adjustment of between institutional transfers with central placement examination scores is the same as the procedures of between institutional transfers.

 

PART 6

Various and Final Provisions

 

Required documents for application

ARTICLE 27 – (1) For an application to be evaluated, the documents specified in the transfer announcement must be submitted by the deadline stated for the application.

(2) Applications with missing documents are not taken into consideration.

Application dates

ARTICLE 28 – (1) Application dates are announced on the relevant web pages by the university and/or the Council of Higher Education in accordance with the concerning regulations.

(2) Applications must be submitted on the relevant web pages with all the required documents completed.

(3) Applicants whose applications are not considered due to missing documentation or failure to meet the requirements will not be refunded the application fee and returned the documents.

 

Summer school

ARTICLE 29 – (1) The courses taken and grades obtained during the summer school are not taken into consideration for the applications made in the Fall semester following the summer school.

 

Tuition fees

ARTICLE 30 – (1) Students who have transferred to another institution/department must pay their tuition fees according to the duration they spent in their previous institution/department.

 

Maximum duration of study

ARTICLE 31 – (1) The time spent by a student in their previously registered institution/program is included in their total duration of study when they transfer to another institution/department. The number of courses recognized as taken as a result of the course adjustment procedure conducted by the relevant faculty is taken into account. However, the total duration of study cannot exceed the maximum duration defined by law when determining a student’s maximum duration of study.

 

Northern Cyprus Campus

ARTICLE 32 – (1) The procedures and principles regarding the implementation of this Directive in undergraduate programs conducted at the Northern Cyprus Campus are determined by the Senate.

 

Invalidated regulation

ARTICLE 33 – (1) Middle East Technical University Directive for Student Transfers in Undergraduate Programs, adopted by the University Senate decision dated February 22, 2022, has been repealed.

 

Validity

ARTICLE 34 – (1) This Directive shall enter into force as of the 2023-2024 Academic Year.

 

Implementation

ARTICLE 35 – (1) The provisions of this Directive shall be executed by the President of Middle East Technical University.