Dear PhD Students,
The Qualifying Examination for students enrolled in our Institute’s PhD Program will be held in June. Applications for the examination will be accepted between 18.05.2026 and 22.05.2026. The exact date and time of the Qualifying Examination will be announced after the application process has been completed.
Click here for the Application Form.
The regulations regarding the Qualifying Examination from the Graduate Education Institute’s Education, Training, and Examination Regulations are provided below.
PhD Qualifying Examination
ARTICLE 21 –(1) The qualifying examination is intended to assess whether a student who has completed their coursework and seminar possesses sufficient knowledge of the fundamental subjects and concepts in their field, as well as adequate scientific research competence related to their doctoral studies.
(2) A student who has successfully completed all courses and the seminar course becomes eligible to take the qualifying examination by the end of the following semester. Students admitted with a master’s degree must take the qualifying examination no later than the end of the fifth semester, while students admitted with a bachelor’s degree must take it no later than the end of the seventh semester.
(3) Qualifying examination meetings are held openly, allowing attendance by faculty members, graduate students, and experts in the field.
(4) Qualifying examinations are conducted twice a year, in December and June, for each department/program. A student may take the qualifying examination at most twice in one academic year.
(5) The qualifying examination consists of two parts: written and oral.
(6) A student who passes the written examination is required to take the oral examination within three days following the written exam.
(7) The qualifying examination jury evaluates the student’s performance in both the written and oral examinations and decides by absolute majority whether the student is successful or unsuccessful.
(8) The result of the qualifying examination is reported to the Institute within three days following the examination by the department/program chair through the student’s advisor, together with an official report.
(9) A student who fails the qualifying examination is required to retake the failed section(s) in the following semester. Students who fail the examination again will be dismissed from the PhD program.
(10) Even if a student who passes the qualifying examination has completed the required course load, the qualifying examination jury may require the student to take additional course(s), provided that the total credit load does not exceed one-third of the total required credits. The student must successfully complete these courses as determined by the relevant institute administrative board.
(11) A student admitted to the PhD program with a bachelor’s degree and who has successfully completed at least seven courses may transfer to a thesis or non-thesis master’s program. In this case, the completed courses may be counted toward the master’s program by decision of the institute administrative board. The student must fulfill the requirements specified in this Regulation for thesis/non-thesis master’s programs.
In accordance with the above-mentioned regulations, students who will take the PhD qualifying examination are required to complete the application form and submit it to the Institute Directorate.
We wish you success.
