For our students who have passed the threshold in the university exam, the choices they will make have a very important place in their lives. There are many important points that you need to consider when making these choices. However, before choosing how to make a choice, it is useful to clarify whether a choice should be made. Especially due to the impact of the pandemic, most of our students who could not prepare for the exam as they wanted this year or who could not find the universities and departments they desired are thinking, 'I wonder if I should not make a choice this year?'
We cover three main topics in our article:
• Should I make a university choice?
• What should we pay attention to when making a university choice?
• Should we look at the ranking or the score when making a choice?
SHOULD I MAKE A UNİVERSITY PREFERENCE?
Education experts who look at this year's data say that the number of students who passed the 180 threshold is very low, those who can choose a four-year university has halved compared to last year, and there will be an average of 15-20% vacant quotas. So what does this mean?
There will be 3 types of candidates in the exam to be held in 2022;
• those who will not make a choice this year and will take the exam again
• those who will not apply this year due to the pandemic and will take the exam next year, and
• those who will take the exam for the first time
In other words, it is predicted that there will be approximately more than 3 million candidates in the 2022 exam due to this accumulation. This shows that even if students get a better score next year, the probability of them staying in the same places in the rankings due to the majority of candidates or, worse, falling behind in the rankings increases. When the quotas are full, students face the danger of being left out and not being able to make a choice.
Education expert Turgay Polat says that students who passed the threshold this year are very lucky and should definitely make a choice. As we mentioned at the beginning of the article, there is a higher probability that students will get good places this year due to the eliminated candidates and the resulting gaps in quotas. So, what should we pay attention to when choosing a university?
WHAT SHOULD I CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING A UNIVERSITY?
First of all, students should not ask themselves the question "Which department?" but "What do I want to do in the future?" One of the biggest mistakes made in our country is to perceive university departments as career choices. Although the university we will enter is important in determining our career, it should not be forgotten that we have now moved from university education to the concept of university life. What will largely shape your life is not just vocational education, but what university life adds to you.
1. Overseas Programs
It is very important that the university you choose has overseas programs such as ERASMUS, especially with the impact of globalization. Such programs should not be seen only as an opportunity to go abroad. If you meet the required conditions, the university you choose will send you to another university with which it has an agreement or to an academic seminar. Such projects allow you to establish connections that you can use in your career in the future. In other words, these programs are a career opportunity that provides income in the long term rather than a short-term trip.
It should not be forgotten that one of the main requirements for participating in programs abroad is a foreign language. It will be very beneficial in the long run for students to master English and learn at least 2 more foreign languages at the university they enter.
2. Minor and Double Major Opportunities
Another important element is minor and double major opportunities. These programs may not be available at every university. So what are minor and double major? In the simplest terms, these programs allow you to receive a certificate or diploma from another department within your faculty.
If you choose to do a minor, if you meet your GPA in the first year, you will be entitled to receive the certificate of this department in addition to the diploma of the department you have chosen in your second year by taking the compulsory courses of your chosen department.
In a double major program, as the name suggests, you study the department you have chosen as a major. In other words, unlike a minor, you have to take all the courses of the department. Therefore, you can complete your undergraduate education with a double diploma by receiving the diploma of the department instead of a certificate at graduation.
However, as we said before, you should think about what you want to do in the future. You can access minor and double major opportunities from the university's faculty websites.
3. University Collaborations
Again, as we mentioned in the international opportunities, you should also look at the business world collaborations of the university you will choose. Questions such as which other universities or companies does your university work with? How many international collaborations are there? show you potential connections that you can use in the business world. Again, looking at the university's own website as well as the faculty website you will choose will allow you to see the opportunities you can experience in the department.
4. Academic Stuff and Courses
Where you study is as important as who you study with. Don't forget to look at the professors of the department you are planning to write. What is the ratio of professors, associate professors or PhDs who will be teaching your course? It should not be forgotten that the more experts they are in their fields, the more knowledge they have and the better education they will provide you.
One of the mistakes students make is to write a department just because their preference is right. Every year, there are many students who unknowingly leave the departments and prepare for the exam again due to their lack of interest in the courses in these departments. Looking at the courses will give you an idea about the department so that you don't waste both your effort and time.
5. Social Activities
Perhaps the most enjoyable part is the social opportunities that the university offers you. For example, how many social groups and activities are there at the university you will choose? How are the central and department libraries? Is there a swimming pool or gym? All these social opportunities expand the circle of both your private and business life. What you add to yourself during university life determines your profession and the direction your career will go. For example, you can provide yourself with a new career opportunity by learning a skill outside of your department through dance or photography communities. You can introduce yourself with activities such as competitions in such communities and expand your social network once again.
SHOULD WE LOOK AT THE RANKING OR THE SCORE WHEN CHOOSING A UNIVERSITY?
As many experts say, looking at rankings when making choices allows you to get more accurate results. So why should we look at rankings if scores are taken into account when entering a university? The logic behind this is actually very simple:
For example, let's compare Boğaziçi University Electrical and Electronics Engineering's 2019 and 2020 scores.
SCORE RANKING SCORE RANKING
2019 555,94 3 537,25 533
2020 557,67 8 542,23 714
If we look at the base scores in the table, we see that it only changed by 10 points between the two years. In such a comparison, it can be thought that there is no big difference in the score success between the two years. However, when we look at the ranking, we see that 181 people played between the two years.
Based on this, the healthiest method is to first write the departments that are ahead of you in the ranking, which we call 'empty preferences' in the first three preferences. For example, if you are in the 10,000th place, you can write a department of 5,000. Your chance of getting into this department depends on the preference rate of those before you. If these departments are not preferred, it may be your turn and you can get into the department.
It is best to start from the departments where you have a chance of getting into the remaining sections and gradually write the departments that are below your ranking in case these departments are filled. However, remember! We do not recommend that you write a department that you do not like or do not want to study just to study at a university.
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