Chapter 8: Second Constitutional Era: Overseas Scholarship Student Policy

One of the most important elements of the Ottoman modernization efforts was sending scholarship students to developed countries to receive education. Thus, it was aimed to transfer the knowledge and technology of the country where education was received to the Ottomans. During the reign of Abdulhamid II, it can be said that this method was reduced to the military field only. It is known that when the Second Constitutional Era came, it became a general belief that the Ottoman State would overcome the crisis through education. Accordingly, sending students to Europe was considered an important phenomenon. However, the lack of planning, programming, and other deficiencies in this practice prevented the Ottoman State from benefiting sufficiently from this method. Of course, the impact of the social, economic, and political difficulties experienced during this period on this situation cannot be denied.