The Anatolian Scholarship Program is Koç University’s (KU) scholarship program, which aims to provide the opportunity to study at KU to highly talented young people who have been unable to access quality higher education due to financial disadvantages. 2017 saw scholarships on the program—which began in 2011 with the support of Arçelik, Ford Otosan, Tofaş, Tüpraş, Turkish Economy Bank and Yapı Kredi Bank—awarded to 376 students from 75 cities, with more than 180 benefactors supporting the program.
Evaluation of applications to the Anatolian Scholarship Program takes many factors into account, such as candidates’ scores in the university entrance exam, family income, social activities, teachers’ references, written composition pieces and the socio-economic situation in their home district. Candidates coming within the first 10,000 in the relevant category of the Undergraduate Placement Exam (UPE) and achieving at least four out of five in their high school diploma are given priority. School of Medicine candidates are expected to come within the first 1,500 in the relevant UPE category.
Files provided by candidates are scrutinized by the committee at KU for preliminary screening. Candidates who pass this preliminary stage are invited to a “24 Hours at Koç” event, where they are hosted on campus to help them get to know the university up close.
As part of the Anatolian Scholarship Program, students are entirely exempted from paying tuition fees and gain the right to free accommodation in dormitories; the cost of their textbooks is also fully covered, and they receive a monthly allowance. The scholarships are non-repayable as part of the program and continue throughout the course of education and training. Students attending the foreign language proficiency program will receive scholarships for the duration of this program plus their standard four-year course; students beginning at the freshman year will receive scholarships for the standard four-year course. For students studying for a double major, the scholarship will cover the language program plus a five-year course. If students receiving the Anatolian Scholarship are studying at the School of Medicine, they will benefit from a seven-year scholarship including the language program. Students with a good attendance record will not lose their scholarships in the event of academic failure. Students who receive scholarship places on KU programs will continue to receive their scholarship if they transfer to another program.
The program is supported by a large number of institutions, organizations and individuals, including the American Hospital, The Anadolu Group, Aygaz, BASF, Bosch, Coca Cola, Denizbank, Enka Foundation, Garanti Bank, Koç Holding, The Koç University Alumni Association, Koçtaş, Limak, Migros, MNG, Opet, Otokar, Otokoç, Sütaş, Tat, Türk Traktör, Tüyap, Unilever, Yapı Kredi and Yıldız Holding.
The Anatolian Scholarship Program received the Gold Award in the category of “Emerging Programs in Fundraising” by The Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), one of the world’s respected educational associations, in 2015.