A Case Study in the Context of an Authoritarian Regime-Building Process: “Founding one University to Every Province” in Turkey

Abstract

“Founding one University to Every Province” is the broadly used expression for the project which was originally coined in 1975 and later reactivated by the then Prime Minister Erdoğan in the 2000s. After AKP‟s accession to power in 2002, over 120 universities were newly founded and the number of universities in Turkey surpassed 200 in 2022. The reactivation of the project has been under constant criticism both by the political opposition and the Turkish Academia since its articulation in the public opinion in 2000s. The discussions are mainly revolving around the following questions: “Is there a need for a university in every single province?” and “Do the newly founded universities have a role in the regime that Erdoğan envisaged?” Based on the interviews conducted with the academic and administrative personnel of the new universities, books, articles and online sources, it is established that the arguments regarding established vs the alternative academia, high perception for corruption in the recruitment process and caderisation allegations, and whether there is need for so many higher education institutions instead of vocational schools are the main concerns and focus of the interviewed university staff. Additionally, new universities have the potential to serve as the hub for training and employment of the “organic intellectuals” in the Gramscian hegemony approach and to train the “ideal citizen”.