PhD Programme in Sociology

General Description

Foundation

Beykent University’s PhD Programme in Sociology of the Department of Sociology, Institute of Social Sciences, was founded in September 2017. The Programme aims to enable students to gain the required qualifications and experience to carry out remarkable and qualitative research, and pursue an academic career. The Programme also aims to cultivate students into competent specialists and academicians who can analyse and understand the societies through the current theoretical approaches, make remarkable contributions to Sociology in terms of theories and methods.

Degrees Offered

PhD in Sociology

Cycle

Third cycle / EQF 8 (PhD)

Admission and Registration Requirements

To apply for the PhD Programme, candidates must hold a bachelor’s or a master’s degree diploma; or be graduates of the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry, or Veterinary Medicine, of which the duration of education must be at least ten academic terms excluding the preparatory programme; they must hold a bachelor’s or master’s degree programmes of the Faculty of Pharmacy, or Sciences; or gain a speciality in an area of laboratory, and submit the copy of their ALES (Academic Staff and Postgraduate Education Admission Exam) score which must be at least 55 of the weight required by the Programme (quantitative, verbal or equally weighted). Candidates who apply for the Programme with their bachelor’s diploma must submit their copy of the ALES score which must be at least 80. The candidates who apply for the Programme with their bachelor’s diploma must have a GPA of at least 3 out of 4 from their undergraduate studies. As well as the copy of the ALES score, the scores of the entrance exam and or the interview, and the GPA from the master’s studies may be used to evaluate the candidates who apply for the Programme with their master’s diploma. The Senate specifies the required application documents such as letters of references, a letter explaining why the applicant wishes to enrol in the PhD Programme, the copies of the international standard exams, etc. For the admission to the PhD Programme, students must take a centrally held foreign language proficiency exam or any international exam recognised as an equivalent by the Council of Higher Education, and take at least 55 points from the foreign language proficiency exam, or equivalent points from an equivalent international exam. According to the Programme requirements, the minimum points required may be increased upon the Senate’s decisions. The Senate decides how much the ALES scores are taken into consideration during the evaluation process (The percentage determined cannot be less than 50%). The Institute may admit students only according to their ALES scores. The copy of the ALES score is not required for the admission to the conservatoires or the departments of Fine Arts, unless the Senate decides to admit students according to their ALES scores. If the copy of the ALES score is required, the base point is set by the Senate.

Recognition of Prior Learning

In accordance with Article 10 of the Regulation on Beykent University’s Postgraduate Education and Training, students are admitted to the programmes at Institutes through horizontal transfer provided that they meet the requirements for horizontal transfer, which are determined by the Academic Board upon the Institute Administrative Board’s decision, and the Head of the Department’s opinion. Students submit a letter of application by means of which they request to be exempt from certain courses within the same postgraduate programme of Beykent University as the courses of the postgraduate programme of another university they had enrolled in before. Their application including the course contents and transcripts will be evaluated upon the Institute Administrative Board’s decision, considering the opinion of the Head of the Department, and the Board will decide which courses the students took will be awarded credits for the courses they must take within the Programme they have recently enrolled. The courses students took at the university they attended may be recognised as the elective or compulsory courses with the Institute Administrative Board’s approval.

Competence Requirements and Rules

6 years, 2 terms in each year, 15 weeks in each term, 240 ECTS in total.

Programme Description

The academic staff consists of 10 faculty members from different disciplines. The normal duration of education of the Programme is eight academic terms, and students must complete their PhD studies in maximum twelve academic years. The Programme offers a Turkish-medium education. It also offers courses on the advanced research methods, social theory and structure, and analysis of social change within the Major of ‘‘General Sociology and Methodology’’.

Learning Outcomes

Students will be able to:

• Analyse the long-established and modern traditions and methodologies in Social Sciences, and improve their knowledge.
• Make comparative and critical analyses and evaluations with the help of their theoretical and methodological knowledge of other social sciences such as Anthropology, Psychology, and Philosophy, as well as Sociology.
• Have advanced knowledge of social theory, social structure, and modern research techniques.
• Seek solutions to today’s sociological problems, and develop different approaches with the help of the analyses they made regarding the problems, and the scientific data they acquired.
• Evaluate different sociological facts and realities by associating the existing theoretical approaches and solutions with them.
• Combine the knowledge they acquired in their field with that of other disciplines to interpret them, and contribute to the production of knowledge.
• Comprehend the interdisciplinary interaction between Social Sciences and benefit from this interaction.
• Become aware of the principles of professional ethics the ethics of science, and abide these principles while carrying out their research.
• Work individually and independently, and undertake responsibility as a team member while they carry out research which will ensure a solution to the problems regarding the different areas of social life.

Career Opportunities

Graduates of the Programme will have the opportunity to work as faculty members at universities. They can also work as specialists and researchers in various public institutions and organisation, ministries, research centres, think tanks, or in the private sector.

Full-Time Faculty Members at the PhD Programme