What is the Level of Undergraduate Students' Geographic Literacy in Turkey?

Geographic literacy is a skill that plays a significant role in our everyday lives, whether or not we are geographers. Given the importance of this subject, the geographic literacy rate of the students in different levels should be determined and road maps should be put forward. The purpose of this study is to reveal Turkish undergraduate students' level of geographic literacy through a nationwide survey conducted in universities and put forward these results for decision makers and educators. A total of 1589 undergraduate students from 127 different universities and representing 191 different departments throughout Turkey participated in the survey. Students' knowledge of 76 basic geographic terms and 15 multiple-choice questions regarding geographic knowledge were investigated. The answers of the students and the relationships between some demographic characteristics and answers were analyzed by using SPSS software. The study revealed that the students "have some knowledge to explain" the terms in general and have 84.33% success in answering the questions. The terms students "know enough to explain" are among the common environmental problems seen in Turkey. This success should be continued. However, students' lacking knowledge should be further investigated by educational authorities.