Defne Öz, Nikita Gordeev and Ece Ilgın Oygucu, students of Near East College, achieved proud success with the first places they got in IGCSE and ILS exams across Europe and Cyprus.

Near East College 11th-year students Defne Öz and Nikita Gordeev and 9th-year Near East College students Ece Ilgın Oygucu achieved successes that made their families and our country proud in IGCSE and ILS, which are international education programs.

According to the exam results, Defne Öz, a student of Near East College, came first in the biology exam in the IGCSE (International General Secondary Education Certificate) program, and Nikita Gordeev came first in Cyprus in the physics and business exam.

Another success was that Ece Ilgın Oygucu, a student of the Near East College, was granted the “Pearson Outstanding Student Award” by being the first in Cyprus in the ILS Science exam in the ILS (Pearson Edexcel I Lower Secondary) program.

What are the aims of the IGCSE and Pearson Edexcel IGCSE programs?
IGCSE, which is one of the widely used teaching programs around the world, helps to develop educational phenomena necessary for life such as remembering information, verbal skills, problem-solving, critical thinking, analysis and synthesis, taking initiative, teamwork and questioning skills. IGCSE also prepares students for international academic life, while ensuring that they are well-prepared for the foreign language and proficiency exams they take.

With success achieved in the IGCSE exams, which are sought as an important criterion by many institutions and employers, students prove their language proficiency for studying in all universities in European countries and the United Kingdom, as well as in the United States, Canada and Australia. At the same time, with the certificate obtained by completing the IGCSE program, students’ access to universities abroad becomes easier.

Pearson Edexcel IGCSE programs increase students’ learning performance by improving their skills in areas such as creative thinking, questioning and problem-solving. In today’s rapidly changing world, Near East College educates self-confident, innovative, responsible, well-equipped and success-oriented students. With a strong emphasis on developing scientific inquiry skills and content designed to support inquiry-based learning, the Pearson Edexcel I Lower Secondary Science curriculum is based on the latest version of the English National Curriculum.

At Near East College, students who are meticulously prepared for ILS throughout their secondary education take an important foundation before IGCSE.

Defne Öz: “I always learned the lesson in class, I studied regularly, so I did not need any private lessons.”
Defne Öz, a Near East College student who got the first place in the biology exam in the international curriculum IGCSE, made her family, school and country proud. Defne Öz says that she works with an intense pace but in a systematic way, “I always learned the lesson in class, I studied regularly, so I did not need any private lessons. I tried to get the information given by my teacher exactly, and then it was reinforced with problem-solving studies. I would like to thank my teachers who have always supported me” and shared her happiness.

Biology teacher Övgü Ökul, who expressed her thoughts on Öz’s success, said, “Defne is a responsible individual who works systematically and determinedly. Defne deserved this success until the end. I believe that we will make many more achievements together.”

Nikita Gordeev: “The way our teachers teach and the topics they teach are very interesting. That’s why we never lose our motivation to listen to the lecture in class.”
Nikita Gordeev, one of the students of the Near East College, who got the first place in Cyprus with her success in the physics and business exams in the IGCSE program, also shared her happiness and excitement. Nikita Gordeev, who said that she did not need any extra private lessons other than the IGCSE programs she took at the Near East College, said, “I studied regularly for 2 or 3 hours every day. On the weekends, I worked a little more intensely and increased this time to 5 to 6 hours. The way our teachers teach and the topics they teach are very interesting. That’s why we never lose our motivation to listen to the lecture in class.”

Saying that Gordeev was a successful and devoted student, physics teacher Sait Baki and business teacher Fatma Elagöz said, “Since the day she came to our school, Nikita has always been in an attempt to do better and better. She is open to learning and loves to learn details in every subject. We are sure that this curiosity and determination will bring her to even better places in the future.”

Ece Ilgın Oyguncu: “I questioned the reason for everything, I wanted to research and learn more. This is how I achieved this success.”
Ece Ilgın Oyguncu, a 9th-year student at Near East College, obtained the highest score in Cyprus in the ILS Science exam and became the first on the whole island. With this success, Ece Ilgın Oyguncu won the “Pearson Outstanding Student Award”.

Oyguncu said, “I studied regularly and systematically. I did not miss the lectures and I studied them over and over again. I questioned the reason for everything, I tried to conduct research and learn more. This is how I achieved this success. I thank all my teachers.”