Germany, Netherlands, England, Austria, Belgium, France, Denmark, Czech Republic, Poland, Estonia, Spain, Italy, Dubai, Australia, Vietnam, USA, Canada… The recent emigration of well-educated Turkish citizens is thought to include hundreds of thousands of people. Medyascope Editor-in-Chief Ruşen Çakır reached out and received dozens of responses from readers and viewers of the website.
Around 60 people responded to Çakır’s outreach on social media, consisting mostly of Turkish citizens who have recently left the country or plan to soon. Regarding this article series, the Medyascope boss said the following in the original Turkish version:
“In the surprisingly barren political environment of the post election period, this series has given me the opportunity to explore a fascinating and current phenomenon happening in our country. I was motivated by the sincerity of the participants, over half of whom were women and a handful of whom also identify as LGBT+. Some names have been changed, but everything conveyed in the series consists of anecdotes that they personally told me. Thanks to each and every one of them.”
34 year old Hasan had spent 10 years in a job he was satisfied with, partially because he believed he could not find a better one. “Then,” he says, “I did something I had never even considered: I applied for nearly a thousand jobs. Why? Because I felt mentally disconnected from Turkey.”
Hasan has now been living in Germany for over a year. It was pretty tough at first. But now he’s happier: “I’m settled in, I’m happy. I realized that I hadn’t said ‘I’m happy’ for a very long time.”
Postgraduate study abroad
Of the nearly 60 people I spoke to, all had found various legal ways to emigrate abroad. Among these various methods, Turkish citizens leaving the country to pursue masters, doctoral, and post-doctoral education abroad made up a significant chunk of emigres. Many of these individuals have, or plan to, stay in these countries following the conclusion of their studies.
Haluk, a Boğaziçi University graduate who completed a masters degree in computer science in Germany, says that young people like himself prefer to do their postgraduate studies abroad these days instead of staying in Turkey. Many, like himself, do not plan to return.
From the various responses, I came across an intersting exception to this. Kutlu is a graduate of Istanbul Technical University’s School of Architecture: “Usually, people go abroad for graduate studies. I came to Japan because I found a very good scholarship. I want to return to the country [Turkey] and possibly even enter politics.”
Turkey a target for ‘brain hunters’
Others move abroad due to company business. Ali, 53, took his family and settled in Spain in 2018: “The company always called me, I didn’t want to, but when things in Turkey got worse in every way, I left without planning to return. I went with my money, I even bought a house.”
Many companies in European countries like the Netherlands have targeted Turkey in recent years in what is known as ‘brain hunting’, a practice that targets highly qualified individuals hoping to emigrate from their home countries. These hiring practices attract many highly-educated Turks seeking more favorable work situations outside the country.
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Berat has been a software developer in Estonia for a year and is one such emigre: “When I went to vote [at the Turkish consulate in Estonia], I saw 3-4 thousand people, most of them were software developers.”
Professors taking the equivalency exam
For those who move abroad by their own means, the first periods can be difficult. Hasan, who was mentioned at the beginning of the article, described the move as a reset, saying: “You reset everything as if you were entering a witness protection program.”
Another striking example in this regard is Kaan, a professor at one of Turkey’s leading medical schools. Despite all his experience and career, he had to take the equivalency exam when he went to Germany in 2017. Kaan elected to move for the future of his two young twins and after getting his start in a relatively small German city, now works at one of the country’s leading university hospitals.
Language courses are another option for many. 34-year-old Turgut went to Australia with his girlfriend through a language school. They got married there. His wife then started to study for a master’s degree. Now on a seven-year visa, the couple does not plan to return.
Some of those who left to the UK benefit from the Ankara Agreement. According to this agreement, they receive residency permits after opening a company in their host country. İbrahim, for example, who is engaged in exportation in Turkey, said, “The [Turkish] state abandoned us. I said, ‘You go your way, I go my way,’ and we came. We even bought a house in London. We are not angry, we are comfortable. We have a quality life. If we stay for five years, we will get permanent residency.”
Written/translated for Medyascope by Leo Kendrick
