Turkey's Parliament debates university pardon bill for 40,000 students

The ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) has submitted a draft law titled “Amendments to the Higher Education Law and Certain Other Laws” to the Turkish Grand National Assembly. The bill proposes a university pardon that would allow roughly 40,000 students who left university before 2022 – including associate‑degree, undergraduate, graduate and other disengaged students – to re‑enroll under prescribed time limits.

In addition to the student‑pardon provisions, the draft contains broader higher‑education reforms: extending contracts for retired faculty members, strengthening technology campuses and technology‑transfer offices, increasing fully‑scholarship slots at private universities, extending funding timelines for private medical faculty hospitals, permitting public universities to open overseas campuses, and imposing harsher penalties for fake diplomas and paid‑for‑thesis services. The proposal is slated for discussion in the Education, Culture, Youth and Sports Committee before moving to a full parliamentary vote, with officials hoping for approval before the upcoming parliamentary recess.