During the 19th century, the Ottoman Empire tries to redefine its attitude towards science. This attitude goes from the suspicion, at beginning of the century, towards new knowledge coming from Europe, to the appropriation of European science taught in the newly founded Istanbul University at the end of the century. This appropriation didn’t come without hard debates, mainly between the traditional ottoman milieu and a new generation belonging to the upper class who has studied in European Universities and Schools of Engineering. This change of mentalities, followed by the wiling of the Ottoman State to modernize its structures and plan a scientific policy was a long process, concluded by the new Turk state after the Kemalist revolution.

On another hand, the National Revolutions of the 19th century which were at the base of the creation of the new national States of Greece, Serbia and Bulgaria, had at their basis the idea of scientific modernization. Science education was considered as a means of national emancipation. The European countries educational models were the ideal of the new establishment of these States, which at their foundation defined an educational policy on science following French, English or Austrian model,

In our paper we will try a comparative study between science policies in the Ottoman State and the new national states of the Balkans during the 19th century.