Possible causes and effects of the changes in quantitative gender gap in turkish higher education

In this study the participation and drop-out ratios in undergraduate, master and doctorate levels of higher education between the years 1995-1996 and 2012-2013 have been examined with respect to gender. As a result of the study it has been observed that the quantitative ‘gender gap’ has vanished in years for the undergraduate level. However it is discovered that although quantitative gender gap has been narrowed it persists in graduate level. In addition, it has been shown that female students have lower drop-out rates than male students in every level of higher education and a comparison between the drop-out rates and participation to labor force with respect to gender and education in Turkey has been carried out. A possible reason for the difference in drop-out ratios for women and men is discussed with using Turkey wide statistics of participation in higher education. Finally, the ‘gender gap’ in graduate level for Turkey is discussed with respect to the ratio of gender of teaching staff in undergraduate programs, graduate schools and centers for application and research