Why Student Retention Matters for Turkish EMI Universities?

Abstract

Students entering English-medium Instruction (EMI) universities and programs must demonstrate English language proficiency before proceeding to their academic program. Approximately 20% of incoming students are able to pass a proficiency exam and begin academic studies straight away. This leaves a significant percentage of students needing to successfully complete an intensive language program before progressing to their academic departments. The majority of these students require 1 year (or more) to achieve this goal. Because of the rigorous demands of the intensive language program, all such students are at risk for not completing the program and leaving the university. There are distinct sub-populations within the language program that have an even higher propensity for attrition. For those who leave, there may be immense psychological, social, and financial ramifications. Likewise for the institution – failing to retain students may have significant implications for finances and reputation. EMI universities and intensive language programs may establish student retention initiatives to minimize attrition. This chapter makes the case for such initiatives, briefly exploring student retention, then through the lens of vulnerable sub-populations, explores best-practices that may strengthen retention in the intensive language program, while having a long-term impact on the students and the institution. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.