The Department of Child Development trains Child Development Specialists who are able to assess all developmental areas (mental, linguistic, motor, social and emotional development and self-care skills) of children who are normally developing or gifted, disabled, vulnerable, working, refugee, delinquent and hospitalized children between 0-18 years of age, prepare developmental education programs based on this assessment, and provide services to parents, educators, and the community. Child development specialists are a member of professional group that provide important contributions to the creation of an entrepreneurial and innovative society with healthy, inquiring, critical, inquisitive, moral and cultural values in the physical and psychological aspects of these services for children, educators and families.

Our current curriculum is structured in such a way as to give our students the competencies to determine the development stages of children, to monitor developments, to prepare appropriate programs according to development stages, to prepare appropriate learning environment according to developmental needs, to give the families, individuals and institutions providing services in child development field.

Classes are held every fall and spring semesters. Students who have completed 240 ECTS courses at the end of the 8th semester are entitled to graduate on condition that they complete their application courses. Graduates of this program serve in various private and official institutions as a  child development  specialist.

Our Mission

Our mission as a department is to give education and training at international standards, to do research and practices, to become more sensitive to social problems, to develop innovative implementations and to educate our students as child development specialists who are critical thinkers, are respectful of human rights, are open to life-long learning, have multidisciplinary work understanding, have professional competence, and have ethical and universal values.      

Our Vision

Our vision is to be a department which is guiding the policies of our country about child development and which makes difference in national and universal level with education, research and community service practices in the field of health sciences.