All of us received the news through an official gazette announcement. Istanbul Bilgi University’s operating license was revoked by a midnight presidential decree published in the Official Gazette.
Just like that, more than 900 academics, 600 personnel, and around 20,000 students are left upset.
After 22 years at Bilgi, I do not know what the next few weeks will show. I will probably find an academic position. But you see, a well-functioning, quite respected university is just declared history, and in my most mature and comfortable years, I will have to think about what to do next. Today, at some point, I even thought about leaving academia behind and living in the US for a while.
Here is a background of what happened:
Istanbul Bilgi University’s operating license was revoked by a midnight presidential decree published in the Official Gazette, citing a Higher Education Law article that allows closure of foundation universities when their education is deemed “insufficient” and prior “warnings” are said not to have been implemented. The decision immediately shut the university down in the middle of the semester and triggered rapid reactions from students, academics, professional bodies, and international media.[1][2][3][4][5][6]
How the closure happened
- The decree appeared in the Official Gazette dated 21–22 May 2026, signed by President Erdoğan, and explicitly revoked Istanbul Bilgi University’s operating license. It states that Bilgi is to be closed because a trustee (TMSF) was appointed to its founding foundation after a criminal investigation into Can Holding, the owning group.[2][5][6]
- The legal basis is “Ek Madde 11” (Additional Article 11) of Higher Education Law No. 2547, which empowers YÖK to recommend closure if the “expected level of education and training is insufficient” and if its earlier recommendations/warnings were allegedly not followed.[3][5]
- Can Holding and its affiliated companies had been seized and handed to the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) in September 2025 in a money‑laundering and tax‑evasion investigation; Bilgi’s founding foundation was brought under trusteeship within that process.[7][8][2]
- The decision was taken in the middle of the academic year for a university with more than 20,000 students, including many from abroad, and with several internationally known scholars on staff.[4][9][1]
Official justifications and promises
- The decree and subsequent coverage frame the closure as a technical quality‑assurance measure: they reference “insufficient education and training quality” and failure to comply with YÖK’s supposed recommendations, rather than explicitly political motives.[9][6][3]
- The Council of Higher Education (YÖK) issued a written statement saying it is taking “necessary measures” so that students, academic, and administrative staff “do not suffer any disadvantages” and that educational activities will continue without interruption for those affected.[5][3]
- State‑aligned media and some official briefings indicate that students will be transferred to another institution, with Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University mentioned as the “guarantor” university where Bilgi students will be placed to continue their degrees.[10][1]
Domestic reactions so far
- Students rapidly organized on campus; images and videos circulating on social media show groups gathering at Bilgi, chanting and holding banners such as “Bu daha başlangıç, mücadeleye devam” (“This is just the beginning, the struggle continues”).[11][1]
- Social media posts document that the campus gates were locked with chains and that some students and staff were briefly unable to exit or enter, which further fueled anger and a sense of being “shut out” from their own institution.[11]
- Law professor Yaman Akdeniz wrote that an institution “built with 30 years of effort was shut down overnight,” a quote widely picked up by international outlets as emblematic of academic concern and grief.[1][4]
- Commentaries by Turkish journalists and commentators (for example Banu Güven, cited in English‑language coverage) argue that closing a university via presidential decree is unconstitutional in light of Article 130 of the Turkish Constitution, which regulates universities and their autonomy, and they frame the move as a severe blow to academic freedom.[12]
- Domestic independent outlets such as Bianet and BBC Turkish emphasize Bilgi’s historical importance as one of the first foundation universities in Turkey and highlight the uncertainty for students and staff despite YÖK’s assurances.[3][5]
International and media framing
- International news agencies and outlets (Reuters, US News, Al Jazeera, The New Arab, ProtoThema, among others) describe Bilgi as a “liberal” or “liberal‑leaning” private university with a reputation in social sciences and a relatively critical or independent academic environment.[6][4][9][1]
- These reports consistently tie the closure to the prior state seizure of Can Holding, reading the move as part of a broader pattern of using financial and legal measures to restructure or neutralize independent institutions.[8][2][7]
- Several pieces underscore the timing (in the middle of the semester, before June exams) and the scale (20,000+ students), presenting the closure as abrupt and disruptive, despite formal claims that students will be protected.[10][6][1]
Key unresolved issues
- At this point, details of how credit transfers, diploma equivalencies, tuition refunds, scholarships, and employment guarantees for academic/administrative staff will actually work in practice remain unclear in public reporting; the official statements are generic and procedural.[5][3]
- There is no detailed public explanation of the specific “educational quality” deficiencies that would justify invoking Additional Article 11 for a university that had recently passed standard accreditation procedures and hosted internationally recognized programs, which fuels criticism that the legal justification is pretextual.[4][1][3]
⁂
- https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/22/turkiye-shutters-liberal-istanbul-university-seized-in-criminal-probe
- https://en.haberler.com/istanbul-bilgi-university-has-been-closed-2257447/
- https://bianet.org/haber/istanbul-bilgi-university-shut-down-by-presidential-decree-319833
- https://www.newarab.com/news/turkeys-erdogan-shuts-istanbuls-bilgi-university?amp
- https://www.bbc.com/turkce/articles/cy42wddw7m8o
- https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/turkey-revokes-licence-university-seized-by-state-criminal-probe-2026-05-22/
- https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/turkey-revokes-licence-university-seized-051932829.html
- https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2026-05-22/turkey-revokes-licence-for-university-seized-by-state-in-criminal-probe
- https://en.protothema.gr/2026/05/22/turkey-erdogan-ordered-the-closure-of-a-private-university-in-istanbul/
- https://www.dawn.com/news/2002235
- https://www.instagram.com/reel/DYo97sCjiqc/
- https://www.turkishminute.com/2026/05/22/erdogan-closes-major-private-university-in-istanbul-leaving-students-academics-in-limbo/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Istanbul_Bilgi_University
- https://thenewregion.com/posts/5437
- https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/turkeys-erdogan-orders-closure-of-liberal-leaning-istanbul-university/
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