Abstract:

This study sets out to prove how and to what extent the social and cultural capitals of university students are efficient in fulfilling the requirements of the university in which they study. In accordance with this purpose, it has been tried to answer the questions such as; What sort of patterns do the social and cultural capitals of the students present? Do the social and cultural capitals of the students provide advantages or disadvantages for them in their university lives and in the activities within or out of the courses? How do the social and cultural capitals of the students organize their social relations and their activities in and out of the campus? Social Capital and Cultural Capital concepts identified by Bourdieu provide a theoretical basis frequently used for analyzing the inequalities within the context of education. While the Social Capital refers to social networks, the Cultural Capital corresponds to cultural competencies, tastes and knowledge. In this context, educational institutions take form in accordance with the dominant culture and it is anticipated from the students to accommodate themselves to this culture. It is assumed that the students succeed or fail in fulfilling the requirements of the university in compliance with the quality of social and cultural capitals they have.

This study was established in the form of case study design which is one of the qualitative research models. The research group consists of 20 students studying in four different faculties in Ankara University Cebeci Campus. The data were acquired via depth interviews. A semi-structured interview form prepared in line with the relevant literature and expert opinion, which consists of 10 questions, was used as a data collection tool. The data gathered were analyzed and evaluated in the sense of categories such as academic life, campus life, off campus life, social relations, backgrounds of the students and their expectations.

Keywords:

Social Capital, Cultural Capital, University Life, University Students, University Requirements.