Extended Summary

In recent years, the migration of individuals in highly skilled professions from Türkiye has begun to occupy an important place in the country’s migration landscape. Türkiye, which for many years was a classic case of unskilled labour migration to Europe, has, since the 2000s, become a country sending skilled labour migrants such as engineers, physicians, and nurses, and this trend has accelerated since the mid-2010s. One of the most notable professions within this migration map is that of physicians. Although the exact number of physicians emigrating from Türkiye to other countries is not known, the “certificate of good standing” issued by the Turkish Medical Association provides an indication of migration intent. While the number of physicians receiving this certificate was 59 in 2012, it rose to 3,025 in 2023 and remained at 2,692 in 2024. The number of Turkish physicians working in Germany offers a clearer picture. According to the statistics of the German Medical Association, the number of doctors in Germany who graduated from Turkish universities increased from 922 in 2012 to 3,169 in 2024 (Die Bundesärztekammer, 2012; 2024). Among foreign physicians working in Germany, Turkish physicians rank sixth, following physicians from Russia, Greece, Austria, Poland, and Iran.

It is clear that this wave of migration points to a new phase and a new character in the migration dynamics that have emerged in different forms for many years between Türkiye and Germany. At this historical turning point—from the “guest worker” experience, an international example of unskilled labour migration, to skilled labour migration—the social, economic, and cultural integration processes that follow migration continue even after the migration event itself has ended, and they continue to transform both societies. The integration of migrant physicians into the new system, the bureaucratic and cultural barriers they encounter, the role of diaspora networks, and return tendencies are among the main dimensions that broaden the scope of this phenomenon.

The aim of this study is to examine the integration dynamics of Turkish physicians who have migrated to Germany through three core dimensions of skilled labour migration. To this end, the study adopts an approach that treats migrant physicians as the primary subjects of integration, and analyses physician migration and integration across three dimensions: the structural dimension, which includes credential recognition and language proficiency; the labour market dimension, which includes professional and occupational acceptance; and the social integration dimension. In this way, drawing on the experiences of physicians with relatively high levels of integration, the study seeks to reveal how integration is perceived.

The study uses a mixed-methods research design that combines qualitative and quantitative data. Within the quantitative component, a survey instrument was developed to capture physicians’ migration processes, working conditions, and integration trajectories, and was administered to 277 physicians. Within the qualitative component, in-depth interviews were conducted with 30 physicians who had migrated to Germany. The main findings of the study show that Turkish physicians perceive integration in Germany not as a goal or an outcome, but rather as a process. Within this process, labour market integration appears to be the dimension in which integration takes place relatively quickly, whereas integration in social and societal relations unfolds much more slowly and continues over time. The findings also indicate that the overall integration process is shaped by migrant physicians’ comparisons between their working and living conditions in Germany and their prior experiences in their home country.