Failing Medical School in Turkey? What to Do When the Maximum Period Runs Out (2026)
13.10.2026
Σύντομη απάντηση
Failing medical school in Turkey? Maximum study period used or dismissal ahead: what happens now and what YÖK requires if you finish Medicine abroad.
Maximum period
In short: Under the Higher Education Law, programmes with a normal length of six years must be completed within a maximum of nine years. A preparatory language year is counted separately. Students who do not finish in time lose their enrolment.
At the end of the maximum period, final-year students receive two additional exams for every course they failed. Those who bring the number of failed courses down to five get further semesters for them. Everyone else is dismissed.
Year blocks
In short: Turkish medical faculties teach the first three years in committees with a final exam and a make-up exam, and the clinical years in rotations. A year that is not passed is repeated as a whole. Two repeated years leave almost no reserve inside the nine years.
Free transfer consultation
Time running out? Check your options before the last exams
We transfer you to medical schools abroad and check the YÖK rules for each of them before you enrol. In a free consultation we plan your route back to Turkey.
Book a free transfer consultationWhy students get stuck
In short: Medical students in Turkey who struggle rarely lack ability. The usual reasons are burnout after years of exam preparation, a programme taught in English at some faculties, depression or anxiety, money and a family crisis.
None of this means you chose the wrong profession. I started dental medicine in Sofia in 2015, at 24, years after most of my classmates, and graduated in 2021. A slower start says nothing about the doctor you will become.
Transfer abroad
In short: A transfer from a Turkish faculty to an English-taught medical school abroad is possible, and Medschool Experts organises it. The receiving university assesses your transcript and course contents. Which universities fit you, and which year you can enter, depends on your profile.
A study transfer is a complicated undertaking. Every university checks hours, content and syllabi in its own way, and the documents have to arrive in exactly the right form. Our experts have almost ten years of experience with study transfers, and we regularly achieve placements into higher years, at times Year 4 or Year 5.
Free transfer consultation
Transfer abroad, return to Turkey: check your options
Send us your transcript and your YKS result. We tell you which universities fit, which year you can enter and what YÖK will ask of you. Free and without obligation.
Check my transfer optionsReturning to Turkey
In short: Yes, you can come back, but only under YÖK's equivalence rules, and for Medicine they depend on the world ranking of your university in the year you start there. Medicine is a programme with a success-ranking condition, currently the first 50,000 in the YKS.
- University in the top 400 of the three ranking organisations accepted by YÖK: graduates of all programmes, Medicine included, receive equivalence directly.
- University in the top 1,000: you apply for equivalence in the normal way, and no YKS result is required.
- All other universities: if you finished secondary school in Turkey, you must show a YKS result from the year you enrolled abroad that meets the success ranking for Medicine. Without it the application is refused.
- STS exam: where YÖK sets it as a condition, you pass the level assessment exam for medical doctors. It has two stages with 200 questions and is held twice a year, in 2026 on 15 March and 23 August. YÖK can add a period of clinical practice.
These conditions are fixed on the day you enrol and cannot be repaired afterwards. We check the ranking position of every university and your YKS status with you before you sign anything.
Free transfer consultation
Plan your way back to Turkey from day one
Ranking, YKS result and STS decide your equivalence. We go through all three with you before you enrol abroad.
Book a free transfer consultationCosts
In short: A state faculty in Turkey costs little, a foundation university many thousands of euros a year. Tuition at European medical schools starts at about €3,500 a year, and living costs in many Central and Eastern European cities are €5,000 to €8,000 a year.
How we help
Medschool Experts reviews your transcript in a free transfer consultation, finds medical schools among our more than 25 partner universities that fit your profile, prepares the application and plans your route back to Turkey. More than 500 students have been placed so far. The first step is always a free transfer consultation.
The author's view
When I began dental medicine in Sofia in 2015, I was 24, years older than most of my classmates. I graduated in 2021. An equivalence problem that a graduate discovers after six years cannot be repaired. For Turkey the order is fixed: first the YÖK check, then the choice of university, then the enrolment.
Summary
In Turkey nine years are the limit for the six-year medical programme, and every failed year is repeated in full. After the additional exams the university ends your enrolment.
A transfer abroad is possible. The return runs through YÖK: ranking of the university, YKS success ranking where required, and the STS exam. We check all of it with you before you enrol.
Conclusion
Do not choose a university abroad by price alone. Book your free transfer consultation and have the equivalence checked first.
Failing medical school in Turkey: 5 questions and answers
How long may I study Medicine in Turkey?
At most nine years for the six-year programme, not counting a preparatory year.
What happens after the maximum period?
Final-year students get two additional exams per failed course. If too many courses remain, the university ends the enrolment.
Can I transfer to a medical school abroad?
Yes. Medschool Experts organises transfers to English-taught medical schools abroad. The year of entry depends on your profile.
Will YÖK recognise a medical degree from abroad?
That depends on the ranking of the university and, below the top 1,000, on your YKS success ranking in the year you enrolled. Most graduates also sit the STS exam.
Does the consultation cost anything?
No. It is free and without obligation.
Τι λένε οι φοιτητές για τη Medschool Experts
Πάνω από 500 τοποθετήσεις σε 25+ συνεργαζόμενα πανεπιστήμια σε περισσότερες από 10 χώρες. Δείτε πώς βίωσαν οι φοιτητές μας τον δρόμο τους προς τις ιατρικές σπουδές στο εξωτερικό μέσα από τις ιστορίες φοιτητών μας.
Σχετικά με τον συγγραφέα
Marcel Kloos
Swiss-licensed dentist, founder and owner of Medschool Experts
Marcel Kloos is the founder and owner of Medschool Experts, a placement agency for medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine and pharmacy degrees abroad. Since 2021 the team has secured more than 500 study places at over 25 partner universities in Europe and worldwide.
Study medicine abroad: Marcel's own path
Born in Stuttgart, Marcel started his degree late: at 24 he enrolled at the Medical University of Sofia, Faculty of Dental Medicine, and graduated in 2021 from the English-language programme. He went through the same steps his clients face today — nostrification of school certificates, entrance interviews, finding a flat in Sofia and later the recognition of a foreign degree. In Switzerland he completed the federal recognition procedure and holds a Swiss dental licence.
What Marcel does at Medschool Experts
Today Marcel lives in Bern and runs Medschool Experts full-time. He visits every partner university in person, negotiates placement agreements directly with faculties and deans, and leads the free consultations in which applicants learn at which university they can start next semester. His YouTube channel on studying medicine abroad has helped thousands of applicants compare universities, costs and recognition.
Topics Marcel writes about
- Study medicine abroad without an entrance exam: universities, costs and admission
- Study dentistry, veterinary medicine or pharmacy in Europe in English
- Tuition fees and living costs at medical schools in Europe and worldwide
- Recognition of foreign medical degrees in the EU, Switzerland, the UK and the US
- Transferring between medical schools and returning home into a higher semester
All articles by Marcel Kloos are based on first-hand visits to the universities, placement data from Medschool Experts and conversations with current students. Book a free consultation to discuss your own path.
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