METU Department of Educational Sciences dates back to the 1960s. In those years, "Department of Education" was under the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and carried out a teaching certificate program, which was offered to the students of Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Sociology and Psychology departments of this faculty in order to give the necessary pedagogical formation training in order to become high school teachers. In 1974, five different undergraduate programs (physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and social sciences teaching) were opened in the Department of Education, which gave teaching certificate courses and elective courses, and these programs gave the first graduates in 1979.

With the establishment of the Faculty of Education in 1982, "the Education Department" transformed to "the Department of Educational Sciences "and became one of the first departments of the Faculty. In the 1983-1984 academic year, a bachelor's degree program in Guidance and Psychological Counseling was established within Educational Sciences department. Between the years of 1988-1999, about 500 students graduated from this program. However, student admission to the program was stopped by the decision of the Council of Higher Education, and no undergraduate students have been recruited since the academic year of 1995-1996. The first graduate programs in the Department of Educational Sciences were initiated in 1983. The programs under the umbrella of the Department of Educational Sciences aim at excellence in education through qualified students, qualified faculty members and international collaborations. METU Faculty of Education, Educational Sciences Department regards education as science and conducts studies in the fields of education, scientific research and community service.

In the field of education, the Department of Educational Sciences emphasizes the basic principles such as providing a flexible, humanistic, democratic and participatory atmosphere that adapts to the changing conditions of the time being and provides the students with an effective education in accordance with their own interests and desires and being committed to the principles of scientificness. Although the department does not have undergraduate students, it gives teaching profession courses to the students who are enrolled in other undergraduate programs in the Faculty of Education.

In addition to these, the department also offers such courses in State University of New York (SUNY) English Language Teaching Program and METU Northern Cyprus Campus Foreign Language Education Undergraduate Program and Guidance and Psychological Counseling Undergraduate Program. Besides, the program gives "Teaching in Higher Education" course to the research assistants working in other faculties outside the Faculty of Education within the scope of "Faculty Member Training Program" (ÖYP) and "Article 52".

In scientific research activities, the Department of Educational Sciences, gives priority determine Turkey's education problems through scientific research; to publish obtained information with the aim of contributing to the national and international literature, and to create more effective graduate level programs.

In community service activities, the Department of Educational Sciences carries out activities for effective sharing and implementation of education and research processes and results with internal and external individuals and institutional structures. In addition to raising specialists and experts who will participate in various departments and levels of the Ministry of Education; by disseminating the findings of the scientific research conducted in the field to this organizational structure, it aims to contribute to the process of forming education policy in Turkey. Another area of activity is active participation in the teaching process of faculty members. At the same time, the department shares the scientific studies that was carried out in the theoretical and applied fields with the relevant private and public institutions and provides consultancy services for in-service training activities.