ABSTRACT

Young people from different educational levels face difficulties in terms of access to employment after graduation almost everywhere in the world. Turkey is among those who experience this problem intensely because of its relatively young population. Even the official indicators, which seem to be too optimistic to show the real picture, are enough to understand the importance of the youth unemployment. According to the Turkish Statistics Institute, one fifth of the youth between 15-24 is unemployed in the country. In addition, the number of those who work in the fields outside of their educational qualifications, and those who have to settle for atypical work are increasing constantly. This leads to disappointment and anger among young people and their parents who had high hopes in sending their children to universities. The anxiety and tension felt by the graduates and their families have negative effect on the society as a whole, as well, especially on educational relations. This research aims to reveal the experiences of recent graduates in their search for a job and discuss these experiences in relation to their university education. Graduates of Spring 2014, from various departments of Kocaeli Universtiy, have been interviewed in the summer of 2015 for this purpose, using semi-structured interview method. Based on graduates’ experiences, the study questions the link between higher education and labour market, in light of the real meanings of education, and tries to provide solutions in terms of preparing students for the labour market during the university years