Turkish language courses

On an intensive course of about 4 hours a day, most Chinese-speaking learners reach A2 (basic conversational) in about 3 to 4 months, B1 (intermediate) in 4 to 6 months, B2 (upper-intermediate) in 6 to 8 months, and C1 (advanced, the usual threshold for Turkish-taught university programs) in 8 to 10 months. At 1 hour a day, expect roughly double. Turkish is actually easier for Mandarin speakers than English in many ways: pronunciation is one-letter-one-sound, there are no noun genders, and verb conjugation is highly regular through suffix agglutination.

TÖMER is the name of the Turkish-language centres run by individual Turkish universities (for example Ankara University's Türkçe ve Yabancı Dil Araştırma ve Uygulama Merkezi). Each centre sets its own proficiency exam, which tests listening, reading, writing, and speaking on the CEFR scale. The Yunus Emre Institute's Turkish Proficiency Exam (TYS) is the other widely accepted certificate. Most Turkish-taught degree programs require C1 (usually 70/100); students below C1 normally take a one-year Turkish preparatory program, and a few programs accept B2. Turkish is not a requirement for visas, residence permits, or work permits. Exam dates are set by each centre: many hold several sittings a year, some monthly. Fees vary by centre and are typically under USD 100 (2026). Our intensive C1 prep program covers past-paper drills and section-by-section strategy.

It is the route for foreign nationals enrolled on a Turkish-language course at a language school authorised by the Ministry of National Education (MEB) or at a university TÖMER. Process: (1) the partner school issues the official invitation letter, which we arrange; (2) you apply for a course-purpose visa at the Turkish consulate in your country; (3) you fly to Turkey and we coordinate your enrollment in the program; (4) you apply for a short-term residence permit for a Turkish-language course. This is not a student residence permit: it is limited to the length of the course, up to 1 year at a time, and can be granted at most twice.

Our standard 1-year language-course package covers pre-registration and the invitation letter, tuition for the course period, private health insurance, the short-term residence permit and government fees, and full application coordination by our team. The all-in price depends on the partner school, weekly hours, and insurance, so we confirm current partner-school prices and provide a written cost breakdown before enrollment. Accommodation and travel are not included. If a refusal ever needs legal action, you engage an independent Turkish lawyer directly and we coordinate. The invitation-letter fee is non-refundable regardless of the visa outcome.

Our partner schools generally enrol adults on the language-course route. For minors, we offer: (a) private 1-on-1 tutoring at a parent's home or our office in Istanbul; (b) family residence permit for children whose parent is already in Turkey on a separate permit; (c) integration into Turkish public or private schools where Turkish is taught as part of the curriculum. For Chinese families with school-age children, the public-school route is often the best, children acquire fluency naturally within 12 to 18 months.

Yes. Classes are taught by our partner schools' qualified Turkish teachers, supported by Mandarin-speaking teaching assistants who explain grammar and vocabulary directly in Mandarin. This removes the explanation gap: grammar nuances are explained in Mandarin without translation friction. We also offer pure Turkish-immersion classes (no Mandarin) for advanced students who want to break the English-bridge habit. Both formats are available 1-on-1 online or in person in Istanbul.