International Degree Students

THE HIGH-SCHOOL DIPLOMA EQUIVALENCY (DENKLİK BELGESİ) (NECESSARY ONLY FOR UNDERGRADUATE DEGREE STUDENTS)

* The “Equivalency Certificate”, (“denklik belgesi” in Turkish) which verifies the equivalency of your High School Diploma to a Turkish High School Diploma, can be obtained either from the Turkish Embassy at your home country or from the Ministry of Education in Turkey.

• Equivalency certificate is the most important and necessary document to proove your application for equivalence of your high school education.
• It is important to know that equivalence certificate is normally supposed to be submitted during registration; however, the university gives you some more time to submit it after registration. In order for your registratioın to be valid you need to submit your equaivalency certificates to international Students Office within 3 months after you finilize your registration. You have to submit your original diploma and transcripts along with your equivalency certificate to International Students Office.
• During registration International Student Office staff will check and copy your original diploma and transcsript and then will give you back original ones as you will need originals to submit to the Ministry of Education for your equivalence application. International Students Office s will ask you to sign a petition, which will be the official commitment from your side for bringing your original documents and equivalence certificate back to International Students Office within a given time. After collecting all the required documents, you have to submit your application file to the Equivalence Office (‘Denklik Ofisi’ in Turkish) on the ground floor of the building of Provincial Department of Education in Istanbul (‘İstanbul İl Milli Eğitim Müdürlüğü’ in Turkish). You should submit your documents to the Application Desk (‘Başvuru odası’ in Turkish) in the Office. After submitting the documents, they will give you an appointment paper showing the date with an ID number on it as you will get yourequivalence certificate and your original documents back through this appointment paper on your appointment date written on that paper. You can give copy of this paper to International Students Office within 10 days after your registration as a proof of your application of your equivalency. You can send the photo of it by email ; internatonal-students@okan.edu.tr

While getting your equivalency certificate do not forget to request your origianal diploma and trancript from equivalence Office and check if these originals are given back compleletly and correctly

HOW TO OBTAIN EQUIVALENCY CERTIFICATE
You may have detailed information by checking the Equivalency Guide from the link below:

Click for The Equivalency Guide

Please find the list of Turkish Consulates / Embassies in your home countries below where you can apply for equivalency certificate

Click fot the detailed info

If your country is not on the list you need to obtain equaivalency certificate from Ministry of Education in Turkey. In this case please follow the steps below ;

1) Make online application through Millî Eğitim Bakanlığı - e-Denklik (meb.gov.tr) to get appointment
To complete online application;

• Fill out the forms with requested informations
• Upload Requested documents
• Choose “İSTANBUL” for Province and choose “ BÜYÜKŞEHİR” for district for appointment place ( If you are in İstanbul)

So “Equivalency center “should be chosen as “İL MİLLİ EĞİİTM MÜDÜRLÜĞÜ”

2) After completing application, your appointment will be settled
3) You will receive a code number as a message
4) Submit your following documents to Ministry Of Education in Sultanahmet/İstanbul with this code number on your appointment date

Address of Ministry of Education: Binbirdirek M.İmran Öktem C.No1 Eski Adliye Binası Sultanahmet/Fatih/İSTANBUL

Click for The Google Location

A) Equivalence Diploma Application Form: Milli Eğitim Denklik_Layout 1 (meb.gov.tr)

B) The original and the copy of your passport (1. ID page, 2. if you have entered Turkey with a visa than copy of the visa page, if not entered with a visa, last entry to Turkey stamp page copy)

C) Original and copy of high High School Diploma(translated into English or Turkish by certified translators)

D) Transcripts of records (must cover all high school years and must cover the credit hours and grades ) It should be translated into English or Turkish by certified translator.

If you have Cambridge or Pearson Certificates ;
you are required to submit documents confirming either of the following three options (a or b or c);
a) 2 A levels + 3 O levels (GCSE) minimum grade D
b) 2 A levels + 1 AS level + 2 O levels (GCSE) minimum grade D
c) 3 A levels + 1 O levels (GCSE) minimum grade D

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

• If you have a diploma from one of the Apostille Convention Signatory countriesyour high school diploma and transcripts must be apostilled (mandatory)

Click for the list of apostille member countries

• If your country is not listed on the Apostille Convention Signatory countries, your high school diploma and transcripts must be approved/stamped by Ministry of Foreign affairs or the Ministry of Education in your country or your Consulate)
• Normally the notarized translation of the diploma and the transcripts is required only if the documents are not in one of the following languages:
  • Arabic
  • English
  • German
  • French
  but the importance of translation of your diploma and transcript is that ;
  In the event that there is no specialist in the language of the education document submitted in the institution for which equivalence application is made, the translation must be made by a certified translator and approved by a notary. However, in case that the documents are translated abroad, the same documents must also have approved by Turkey's Foreign Representative in the country concerned.

5) University Acceptance Letter copy
6) Student Residence Permit Card (if you have at the time of application)

After getting your equivalency certificate you have to submit it together with your original diploma and transcript to international students office.
Before submitting your original equivelency certificates to international Students Office you can send them by email first ; international-students@okan.edu.tr

How to Get Your Equivalency Application Result
1) You have to go to the Equivalency Office on your appointment date with the appointment paper, your passport and student residence permit card (If available). You should submit your appointment document to the Result Desk (‘Sonuç Odası’ in Turkish) in the office to get your file back.

2) If your equivalence application is approved, the Result Desk will provide you “Equivalency Certificate” (“Denklik Belgesi” in Turkish) togetrher with all the application documents (original diploma and trancript) you have submitted before. Please check your file and see if all your previously submitted documents and your equivalence document are given back to you completely and correctly.

3) After getting your equivalency certificate, please submit it together with all the original documents to the International Studenst Office.

TEMPORARY EQUIVALENCY CERTIFICATE (“GEÇİCİ DENKLİK BELGESİ” in Turkish)
Please make sure that you receive Final (permanent) Equivalency Certificate as in some circumstances Equivalence Office may give you Temporary Equivalency Certificate”(Geçici Denklik Belgesi” in Turkish)because of some missing documents that you have not submitted such as residence permit card copy (you may not have residence permit at the time of equivalency application) . Other than residence permit, Equivalency Office may find out your missing grades of your transcript record. In any case you should submit copy of Temporary Equivalency Certificate to international Students Office and apply for Final(permanent) Equivalency Certificate again to get your final (permanent) equivalency certificate

Please read carefully what document is missing and requested on Temporary Equivalency Certificate”(Geçici Denklik Belgesi ) Because this document is in Turkish , international students Office may help you to read it.

After getting your residence permit card or obtaining missing document that is requested on Temporary Equivalency Certificate”(Geçici Denklik Belgesi ) you should apply again for Final(permanent) Equivalency Certificate . In this case please follow the steps below ;

• Take a copy of the “temporary equivalency certificate” before you submit it to the Internatinal Students Office
• Fill out the application form given by the Application Desk again (Başvuru odası)
• Give the copy of the “temporary equivalency certificate” and “residence permit card copy” together with the application form.
• Application desk will give you an appointment day again to get your permanent (final) equivalency certificate and you need to go and get your final equivalence certificate on the appointment date.
• After getting your permanent (final) certificate, please submit it to the Internatinal Students Office.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

• Please note that students, whose equivalency certificate application is rejected are not allowed to legally register to any university in Turkey.
• Rules and regulations regarding the equivalency certificate are subject to change by the Turkish Ministry of Education.
• Applying for the equivalency certificate is the students’ responsibility, but International Students Office will guide you for the proces

International Students Office
international-students@okan.edu.tr