Management Degrees in Turkey: Which One to Choose
What "management" is called in the Turkish university catalogue, how general and sector-specific management degrees differ, and what each costs in 2026–27.
The short answer
Turkish universities rarely offer a degree simply called Management. General management is taught as Business Administration (İşletme), which 59 private and 102 state universities list in the 2026 YÖK Atlas catalogue; a separate Management programme (Yönetim Bilimleri Programları) exists only at Sabancı. Everything else is a sector-specific management degree, from health and sports to hotels, logistics and aviation. A bachelor's takes four years, plus a preparatory year without an accepted language certificate. For 2026–27, general management at private Istanbul universities costs from $4,500 a year (Okan, Turkish-taught) to the $36,500 list price at Sabancı.
So the useful first question is not "where can I study management?" but "what do I want to manage?" The answer decides the diploma title, the language options, the universities and even how much maths you will face.
Management degrees in the Turkish catalogue
YÖK Atlas, the official catalogue of Turkey's Council of Higher Education, gives these counts for 2026: Business Administration at 59 private and 102 state universities, Management Information Systems at 47 private and 49 state, Health Management at 17 private and 61 state. Narrow degrees are rare: Management Engineering is offered only by İTÜ and Bahçeşehir (BAU), and Hotel Management only by Özyeğin.
| What you want to manage | Turkish title | English title | Examples in Istanbul | Guide |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A whole company: strategy, finance, marketing, people | İşletme; Yönetim Bilimleri | Business Administration; Management | BAU, Okan, Sabancı | Business Administration |
| Processes and production, with heavy maths | İşletme Mühendisliği | Management Engineering | BAU, İTÜ | Management Engineering |
| A hospital or clinic | Sağlık Yönetimi | Health Management | Medipol, Okan, Üsküdar | Healthcare Management |
| A club, league or sports venue | Spor Yöneticiliği | Sports Management | Haliç, Okan, Gedik | Sports Management |
| A hotel and its guest services | Otel Yöneticiliği | Hotel Management | Özyeğin | Hotel Management |
| Tourism products and destinations | Turizm İşletmeciliği | Tourism Management | Bilgi, Yeditepe | Tourism Management |
| A company's digital systems and data | Yönetim Bilişim Sistemleri | Management Information Systems | İstinye, Bilgi, Medipol | Management Information Systems |
| Demand, brands and sales | Pazarlama | Marketing | Bilgi | Marketing |
| Supply chains and warehouses | Lojistik Yönetimi | Logistics Management | Medipol, Bilgi | Logistics Management |
| Hiring, appraisal and pay | İnsan Kaynakları Yönetimi | Human Resources Management | Medipol | Human Resources Management |
| An airline or airport | Havacılık Yönetimi | Aviation Management | Medipol, Bilgi | Aviation Management |
This page compares management branches with each other. If you have already settled on general management and want every English-taught Business Administration programme by university, including MBA and PhD fees, go to the Business Administration guide.
What a general management degree looks like: Sabancı
Sabancı's Management programme keeps required courses to a minimum and leaves a wide choice of electives. Its required courses include English Communication Skills in Business Life, Introduction to Management, Introduction to Marketing, Management Information Systems, Corporate Finance and Introduction to Data Analysis and Research in Business. The business school's plan also offers Organizational Behavior, Operations Management, Introduction to Business Analytics, Supply Chain Management and Human Resources Management.
- Load and standard. 240 ECTS; graduation needs a GPA of at least 2.00 out of 4.00 and every course in the plan.
- Choosing a direction. Electives let you lean towards analytics, finance, marketing, entrepreneurship or strategy, and you can add a double major or a minor, for example in finance or entrepreneurship.
- Accreditation. The business school is accredited by AACSB.
- Where graduates go. Sabancı lists sales, consultancy, marketing, human resources, procurement, audit, customer service and finance or banking among its graduates' jobs.
How this differs from a typical Business Administration degree
At most universities İşletme is a fixed eight-semester plan: accounting, micro- and macroeconomics, statistics, law, marketing, finance, human resources and strategy. Sabancı has a smaller compulsory core and more freedom, and the price reflects it: four to eight times Okan's or Medipol's. That flexibility helps if you have not chosen a business function yet. If you already know you want logistics or HR, a sector degree is the more direct route.
Management degrees: universities and 2026–27 fees
One or two verified examples for each branch. All amounts are annual bachelor's tuition in US dollars as published by the university.
| University | Programme | Degree | Language | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sabanci University | Management | Bachelor | English | $36,500/yr list price; $24,500/yr for new international students without a scholarship (2026–27) · fee source |
| Bahcesehir University | Business Administration | Bachelor | English | $8,500/yr (2026–27) · fee source |
| Okan University | Business Administration | Bachelor | Turkish | $4,500/yr; $4,275 if paid in advance (2026–27) · fee source |
| Okan University | Business Administration | Bachelor | English | $5,000/yr; $4,750 if paid in advance (2026–27) · fee source |
| Bahcesehir University | Management Engineering | Bachelor | English | $9,000/yr (2026–27) · fee source |
| Medipol University | Human Resources Management | Bachelor | Turkish | $5,500/yr; $4,950 if paid in advance (2026–27) · fee source |
| Medipol University | Logistic Management | Bachelor | English | $4,500/yr; $4,050 if paid in advance (2026–27) · fee source |
| Medipol University | Health Management | Bachelor | English | $4,500/yr; $4,050 if paid in advance (2026–27) · fee source |
| Istinye University | Management Information Systems | Bachelor | English | $8,000/yr (2026–27) · fee source |
| Bilgi University | Marketing | Bachelor | English | $12,000/yr, VAT included (2026–27) · fee source |
| Ozyegin University | Hotel Management | Bachelor | English | $25,000/yr standard rate (2026–27) · fee source |
| Halic University | Sports Management | Bachelor | English | $2,700/yr (the list gives no academic year) · fee source |
How international students are admitted
Private universities take applications directly through their own online systems, without a Turkish state exam. Okan, for example, lets you list up to three programmes in order of preference and issues a full acceptance letter, which you then take to a Turkish consulate for the student visa. For a bachelor's you need a passport, photo, school certificate with grades and a language certificate; without one, the university sets its own exam.
Language: where applicants slip up
- IELTS is not accepted everywhere. BAU's preparatory-year exemption list names TOEFL iBT 72, PTE Academic 55, the Oxford Test of English at 140 and its own exam at 60 out of 100, but not IELTS. Okan states that it does not accept IELTS and sends those applicants to its own English exam.
- Turkish-taught programmes. Okan accepts a TÖMER certificate at B2 obtained within the last two years. Without one, students take Okan's Turkish exam and, if they do not pass, study Turkish for at least a semester.
- The preparatory year. If you cannot prove the language, plan for one semester to a year of English or Turkish. All new BAU students also take an English placement test.
Documents after admission
At registration you will need a translated and notarised school certificate, health insurance and, where the university requires it, the school-diploma equivalence certificate (Denklik Belgesi). Okan explains that it is issued by the Turkish education attaché at the embassy or consulate in your country, or in Istanbul if your country has no attaché. The university decides admission; a Turkish consulate decides the visa.
Careers after a management degree
A general Business Administration graduate usually starts in one function: junior analyst, sales or purchasing specialist, project coordinator, HR assistant. Sector degrees lead into their own world: hospital administration, clubs and federations, hotels, airlines, logistics companies. Managing people normally comes after several years in one function.
Working in Turkey requires a work permit arranged by the employer, and roles in hospitals, public bodies and many Turkish companies need fluent Turkish. If you plan to go home after graduating, find out in advance how your country recognises a Turkish bachelor's: that decision belongs to your national authority, not the university.
General Business Administration suits you if
- you have not picked a function yet and want to try marketing, finance and HR first
- you plan a master's or MBA and want a broad base
- you are ready for accounting, statistics and law in the first two years
Go straight to a sector degree if
- you know the setting: hospital, club, hotel, airline or warehouse
- you want a lower fee: Medipol's and Haliç's sector programmes cost less than BAU's Business Administration
- you want practice in that industry from year one
Mistakes to avoid
- Confusing Management with Management Engineering. The second is an engineering degree with advanced maths and optimisation, and at BAU it costs more ($9,000 against $8,500).
- Comparing a bachelor's fee with a master's fee. Turkish master's prices are usually for the whole programme; bachelor's prices are per year.
- Assuming a sector degree exists in English. Health Management is mostly Turkish-taught; in Turkey itself, YÖK Atlas 2026 lists a fully English version only at Medipol.
- Forgetting the preparatory year. Four years become five, with an extra year of fees and living costs.
- Expecting a management job on day one. First roles are analyst, coordinator or specialist.
Before you pay
- Check the exact title and language in YÖK Atlas and in your acceptance letter: İşletme, Yönetim Bilimleri and İşletme Mühendisliği are different diplomas.
- Confirm that the university accepts your language certificate and the score that exempts you from the preparatory year.
- Ask whether the price is annual, includes VAT, and how it differs if you pay in advance.
- Find out whether an internship is required and who helps international students find one.
- Budget for tuition, the preparatory year, housing, insurance and the residence permit.
Management degrees in Turkey: questions applicants ask
Answers refer to the programmes and fee lists checked on 7 October 2026.
In practice, yes: general management is taught as İşletme, which Turkish universities translate as Business Administration. A separately titled Management programme (Yönetim Bilimleri Programları) appears in YÖK Atlas for 2026 only at Sabancı, with more electives. Sector degrees such as Health Management or Sports Management are different diplomas.
For 2026–27, general management at private universities costs from $4,500 a year (Okan, Turkish-taught) and $5,000 (Okan, English-taught) to $8,500 at BAU. Sabancı lists $36,500 a year and $24,500 for new international students without a scholarship. Medipol's sector programmes start at $4,500.
Not necessarily, and it is not accepted everywhere. BAU exempts students from its preparatory year with TOEFL iBT 72, PTE Academic 55 or its own exam at 60 out of 100 and does not list IELTS; Okan states that it does not accept IELTS. Without a suitable certificate you take the university's exam.
Yes, private universities admit international bachelor's applicants on school grades through their own online systems. An exam may be needed only for the language of instruction. Some state universities use TR-YÖS results instead.
Some are. Business Administration is taught in English at BAU, Okan and many others, Management at Sabancı, and Medipol teaches Logistic Management, Aviation Management and Health Management in English. Other English options include İstinye's Management Information Systems, Bilgi's Marketing and Özyeğin's Hotel Management; Medipol's Human Resources Management is Turkish-taught.
General Business Administration suits you if you have not chosen a function yet or plan a master's. If you are sure of the setting, such as a hospital, club, hotel, airline or warehouse, a sector programme gets you relevant internships sooner and is often cheaper.
Management Engineering (İşletme Mühendisliği) is an engineering degree that applies maths and optimisation to production and processes. In Turkey, YÖK Atlas 2026 lists it only at İTÜ and BAU; BAU charges $9,000 a year for 2026–27.
Not sure which management branch fits you?
A personal strategy, requirement checks, selection of agreed options, document preparation, applications, and support are provided under an agreement with StudyU; the university decides admission and a Turkish consulate decides the visa. During the free initial consultation, we clarify your goal, profile, timing, and budget and identify the next realistic step.
Related programmes
Each guide covers one management branch by university and fee.
How to apply for Management in Turkey
The university assesses the specific school qualification, subjects, grades and teaching-language requirements for this programme. With an 11-year certificate, confirm eligibility and any exams, portfolio or other selection steps for the chosen intake. Check which language certificates or university assessments are accepted; denklik and registration requirements are separate from admission. Under an agreement with StudyU, we help prepare the agreed application and equivalence documents; the university decides admission and the competent authority decides equivalence. Start 6–9 months ahead to allow time for the university’s published procedure and document checks.