Student-led gentrification in anatolian cities: the analysis of studentification process in Bosna Hersek Neighborhood of Konya Province

The term of 'studentification' was coined by Darren Smith in 2002 to describe the distinct social, cultural, economic and physical transformations within university towns where university students migrate seasonally. The thesis aims to reach different groups that are experiencing the process of studentification at different levels and to uncover the ways studentification transforms the neighborhoods and the structures of relations among different groups and to document the positive and negative effects of process on the neighborhoods. Bosna Hersek, a neighborhood located just adjacent to Selçuk University –the second-largest university in Turkey in terms of student enrollments, was selected for the thesis case study. The research examines the studentification process from the perspectives of different groups (student residents, local residents, academicians, real estate agents) in the studentifying neighborhoods. The thesis was mainly prepared using qualitative research methods (in-depth interview, participant observation) and at the same time quantitative data (TUIK, YÖK and ÖSYM) were also used. The neighborhood pattern emerged following the studentification process in Bosna Hersek bear similarities with many other gentrified areas: real estate values has shown a rise, the residential and commercial structure of the neighborhood has been reshaped according to the needs of the newcomers, the neighborhood has become dominated by a single social group (university students) and the former population is being displaced socio-culturally (indirect displacement), if not physically (direct displacement). Bosna Hersek has transformed into a 'student ghetto' where the segregation between students and non-students and the numerical and cultural domination of the former group can easily be read.