Today’s Zaman, Turkey
Sept 8 2008
Prof. Soysal: Most Turkish universities are still autocratic
AyÅ?e Soysal
Professor AyÅ?e Soysal, a former rector of
BoÄ?aziçi University, said `academic freedom’ is a
distant idea for many Turkish universities and that this has left many
researchers feeling restricted. `The main problem is that most of the
universities in Turkey are still autocratic.
In the West, researchers are more independent. In Turkey, however,
department heads expect researchers to work on subjects that they find
appropriate,’ she said, adding, `This fact is especially disturbing
for the young people who have been educated in European and US
universities.’
Soysal was one of Turkey’s few rectors who drew attention for her
pro-freedom views. She was especially disturbed in 2005 when the
university first decided to host — and then cancelled because of a
court order — a conference on the Armenian issue titled `Ottoman
Armenians during the Decline of the Empire’ that would discuss World
War I-era killings of Armenians, still a taboo in Turkey.
She had a good chance of becoming a rector in the next four-year term
despite coming in second in the elections, but she called for respect
for the democratic election process and expressed her unwillingness to
accept such an appointment.
Speaking to Monday Talk, she elaborated on the shortcomings of the
higher education system in Turkey.
There are quite a lot of women in Turkish universities as academics
but, when it comes to the upper-level positions, there are so few. Why
do you think this is the case?
It is harder for women to get elected. Maybe this is a discouraging
factor for women. Despite that difficulty, though, women should be
stubborn and become candidates for the elections. That’s what I did. I
became a candidate three times to be the head of the university, but I
was elected only once. This is how it happens. Women should accept
this and try to overcome the glass ceiling.
You came in second in the last election by a close margin and you
still had a chance to become the head of the university. But you did
not wait for the whole process to be completed. Why?
I wanted the democratic process to prevail, but I was not able to do
anything but send some messages. According to the legal procedures,
universities need to have at least six candidates, and we had only six
candidates. If I retracted, the elections would be null, so I did not,
but I called for respect for the result of the election. I remained as
a candidate, but I did not go to the interview at the Higher Education
Board [YÃ-K].
Does YÃ-K call each candidate for an interview?
Yes.
How would the process work if you went to the interview? What would be
asked in those interviews?
The interview system arose a few years ago, so I have never been
interviewed by YÃ-K. I do not know what questions are asked. The
law says YÃ-K should make a short of list of three candidates among
the six, rank them and send the list to the president.
The president does not have to appoint the person who came in first in
the election, and sources in Ankara say the president was likely to
appoint you as the rector. When there was such a demand at the higher
levels, was it hard to indicate that you were not willing to take the
position?
Yes, it was.
What are the problems with the current rector election system?
Before law No. 2547, rectors were appointed only by the
president. Then upon the initiative of some of the universities,
including BoÄ?aziçi University, the system was
changed. Now there is a middle ground: Both voting by the faculty and
YÃ-K are involved in the process. As a result, YÃ-K and the
president are involved in appointing rectors.
What is the main problem with that?
To me, the main problem is that it has not been made clear what is
expected of a rector. Currently university instructors vote for the
rector candidates. So they have some expectations, but what are they?
If students voted, they would expect something else, probably. So who
should appoint rectors is a subject that is currently being discussed
in the world. And there are different models. If what is expected of a
rector can be clearly defined, then the system of electing one would
be clear.
How do you think this could be done in Turkey?
There are varying factors. The needs of the universities differ
according to where they are located. Is it an inner-city university or
is it outside of a city? Is it a newly established university or a
rooted university? So a framework system should allow responses to the
different needs and demands of the universities.
Do you think an autonomous system would help?
Autonomy should be provided in the academic environment, but having
autonomy at the administrative level would present problems. Take
BoÄ?aziçi University, for example: It is a public
university supported by public funds, so it should be accountable to
the public. We should look at the models available in the world and
adopt the administrative models of respectable universities.
What would you say about the responsibilities of rectors?
Good governance is a big part of their responsibility and nobody
inspects them on this issue. A university is like a company. For
example, we are a mid-sized university with 11,000 students and
thousands of employees. Somebody should evaluate the rector to see
what has been done at the university since his or her ascendance to
the position of rector. This has not been done and the system has been
criticized without bringing concrete solutions to the problems. I am
not saying this to defend the system, but we cannot say that the only
culprit behind the low-productivity level at the universities in
Turkey is the system.
How do you think university rectors could be evaluated?
The office of the rector should be transparent. What the rector
promises and what is being done can clearly be seen then. The rector
can periodically provide information on what is being promised and
done or not and why. Academics should also be interested in this
process. They should have a shared vision for the university. They
should clearly outline their expectations and question how many of
them have materialized. In addition, the rector’s office should be
observed from outside the university, as well, because the university
is a place where the future heads of companies, state institutions and
entrepreneurs are educated. So what happens at the universities
matters to everyone. If we have a look at what is going on in the
universities after a rector is appointed for his or her four-year
term, if we adopt an evaluation mechanism, then universities would be
better administered and would be better places for research.
What were the problems you faced as a former rector?
Most of the rectors would complain about financial difficulties, but I
believe strategic budget management can be a remedy to that
problem. There are ways to gather donations, as well. The main problem
in a state university is the recruitment problem. Public
administration law binds you and it becomes too difficult to recruit
the necessary staff you need. I am not talking about the supportive
secretarial staff, but the academic personnel. The process is too
slow. The university is a dynamic place because research is a dynamic
area. You need to establish new departments and new laboratories fast,
but you need to support those new places with more instructors,
assistants and researchers. You need a flexible recruitment system to
be able to do that. We have such a rigid system in which appointments
can take months. Furthermore, you are even bound with the retirement
plans of the people appointed.
When we look at the Turkish scientists and researchers in developed
countries, we see that they are quite productive, but when they are in
Turkey, they are no longer so prolific. Do you think this situation is
partly due to the inflexibility of the Turkish system?
The main problem is that most of the universities in Turkey are still
autocratic. In the West, researchers are more independent. If they
receive a project, they can do the related research. In Turkey,
however, department heads expect researchers to work on the subjects
that they find appropriate. This fact is especially disturbing for the
young people who have been educated in European and US
universities. TÃ`BÄ°TAK [Scientific and Technological
Research Council of Turkey] has played an important role in overcoming
this problem, at least in the scientific areas; but literature, for
example, is not in the scope of TÃ`BÄ°TAK.
You have not mentioned much about the budgetary problems of the
universities, but what would you say about this issue? For example,
does a highly respected university, such as, BoÄ?aziçi,
which is considered the Harvard of Turkey, have enough resources?
Of course not. In the United States, an average university has a
budget 15 times more than ours, not to mention the universities like
Harvard and MIT, which have millions of dollars in their accounts. Our
budget is YTL 100 million. Indeed, our situation is dire because half
of our budget goes to personnel wages and benefits.
Are there student representatives at universities?
Each university needs to have a student council. The way it works is
that a student representative is elected in a department and then
students elected in the departments come together in their faculty to
elect a representative from their faculty. Then faculty
representatives elect a student to represent all the students of the
university. At BoÄ?aziçi, we have the student
representative attend the board of directors meetings when matters
concerning students are discussed. During my term, we included the
student representative in the tenders to select a food company, to
give service to students. But this is not the case at each university.
Is there an institutional regulation at BoÄ?aziçi
regarding student representation?
YÃ-K has a basic regulation requiring higher education institutions
to have student representatives. And the harmonization laws with the
European Union call for this, as well. However, not every university
complies with it.
You are known to be supportive of freedoms but that attribution seems
to make your job more difficult rather than easier, right?
Unfortunately, you are right. Universities are the places in which
full freedoms should be practiced while respecting the rights of other
people. In Turkey we have a different picture. People think that there
should be one idea at the university: the idea of the rector. This
cannot be. A rector is a person who keeps all people together despite
their varying views. We should remember that law No. 2547 was created
when there was military rule in Turkey. That law seeks to punish
freedom of expression. And that created an environment of
distrust. This should be changed.
Was the court case following the planned Armenian conference at the
BoÄ?aziçi University a result of a mentality biased
against freedom of thought and expression?
It probably was. Kemal Kerinçsiz [a member of the executive
board of the Lawyers’ Association] filed a court case against us.
What were your thoughts after seeing his name among the people
detained as part of the Ergenekon investigation?
I wasn’t surprised because at the time we received many
ill-intentioned faxes from various sources. Now I can see that those
people might be connected.
Where were the faxes coming from?
For example, from NGO’s whose names appear in the Ergenekon
proceedings.
A new term for higher education will start and the headscarf issue
continues to be a problem¦
Fortunately, I am not a rector anymore. But I wish Turkey would find a
way to allow its young conservative women who choose to wear
headscarves to receive higher education.
Have you noticed any discomfort among students because of wearing or
not wearing a headscarf?
Not at all.
Who is AyÅ?e Soysal?
Having served as the first female rector of BoÄ?aziçi
University from 2004 to 2008, she returned to the department of
mathematics as an instructor. She has recently become a consultant for
the Women Entrepreneurs of Turkey (KAGÄ°DER)
organization. Professor Soysal also held office as vice dean of the
School of Arts and Sciences and as the chairwoman of the department of
mathematics. Between 1992 and 2004, she was elected dean of the School
of Arts and Sciences for four consecutive terms. She also represented
BoÄ?aziçi University in the Interuniversity Council
(Ã`AK), and she held board membership for the Turkey branch of the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(UNESCO). Her research interests are in finite group theory,
cohomology of groups and commutative rings.
[email protected]
08 September 2008, Monday
YONCA POYRAZ DOÄ?AN Ä°STANBUL