Student review [#98042] for International Relations
at Hacettepe University - HU

The uni is fine in general. I studied in the Beytepe Campus; it’s a bit far away if you’re commuting from the city centre or any other place, but it’s green and offers a lot of fun activities and a true university experience that I wouldn’t have got in my home country. Our faculty’s building (IR in Economics and Administrative Sciences) was a bit outdated, with a toilet lacking toilet paper, classes not being cleaned etc. and showing underfunding, but it was fine in other aspects.
My degree was okay – I feel like I could’ve done more; it wasn’t challenging enough. When I went for the exchange, I saw how academia worked in other countries, that you can take classes from different departments, really mix and match, have career centres and other amenities. We had to attend all classes (with actual attendance sheets) for lectures, even if they were just presentations that I could’ve read at home, what was a bit annoying, but it is the whole education system, not the university’s fault. Also, my degree was in English, but some professors still conducted the classes in Turkish, or their level of English was not satisfactory. We mostly just listened and copied information that was then expected from us in the exam and I really wish students would be more involved, with some group projects or seminars. If you are a bit smart and clever, it is a fun and doable degree; I know, however, that people in other departments are really struggling. Overall, I think I would’ve picked a different uni if I could, but I’m doing the best with what I have here, enjoying the campus life.