Turkish-Kosovar students travel 80 km daily for education in Turkish

By Eren Beksac and Asiye Latife Yilmaz

PRISTINA / ISTANBUL (AA) - High school students Elif Koroglu and Elif Bunyaku live in the northern city of Mitrovica in Kosovo and travel 80 kilometers (50 miles) to the capital city of Pristina every day for school, as there are no high schools in their city that offer Turkish-medium education.

Koroglu and Bunyaku have a 40-kilometer (25-mile) commute each way, which they do by bus daily, taking them about two hours to get to school and back.

Koroglu told Anadolu that they face even more challenges during the winter months, saying, "This is more of a problem in winter because it's dark and the weather is colder very early in the morning."

After completing her primary education in Turkish in Mitrovica, Koroglu said that she chose to continue her high school education in Turkish. "I travel from Mitrovica to Pristina every day just to study in Turkish. My grades are excellent, and all the travel is worth it. I plan to pursue my university education in Türkiye."

Bunyaku said after finishing her primary and secondary education in Albanian in Mitrovica, she "switched to Turkish for better opportunities and to study in Türkiye.”

She plans to complete high school in Turkish in Pristina and then go to Türkiye for university, although she has not yet chosen a city or field of study.

Bunyaku expressed her appreciation for her school and teachers, noting that her family's financial and emotional support enables her academic pursuits.

- Turkish Education in Kosovo

Turkish-medium classes for the Turkish community in Kosovo were first introduced in 1951 during the former Yugoslavia. After Kosovo gained independence, the Turkish community retained this right.

Education in Turkish is still available at various school levels in Prizren, Pristina, Mamusha, Mitrovica, Gjakova, and the village of Dobrucan, despite a decline in student enrollment in recent years.

Both Pristina and Prizren universities have Turkish language departments at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

According to the latest population data collected through a census conducted last year in Kosovo, there are 19,419 Turks living in the country.