News from Department

Istinye University hosted the Türkiye's first ever UNESCO MOST School titled “Fundamentals of Artificial Intelligence Use in the Field of Migration.” Held between 9–11 July in collaboration with the Presidency of Migration Management (PMM), the Turkish National Commission for UNESCO, and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Türkiye, the programme addressed the potential contributions of AI technologies to migration governance and discussed ethical use cases that could generate societal benefit.

The event brought together a distinguished group of participants, including Prof. Dr. Mehmet Akif Kireçci, Chair of the MOST and Migration Specialization Committee of the Turkish National Commission for UNESCO; Prof. Dr. Ayselin YILDIZ, member of the same committee and coordinator of the MOST School; Prof. Dr. Ahmet İçduygu, Director of Koç University’s Migration Research Center (MiReKoc); Assoc. Prof. Dr. Özgü Yolcu, Communications Advisor at PMM; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Karataş, Director of PMM’s Migration Research Center; Veysel Dağlar, Head of the IT Department at PMM; and Ivanka Spadina, Senior Coordinator of the Migration and Border Governance Programme at IOM Türkiye.

The discussions focused on how technological developments, particularly AI, can be ethically integrated into migration policies and governance frameworks.

Once again this year, graduation has become a meaningful moment where the traces of the past meet the hopes of the future. After a challenging journey, our graduates have completed not only an academic process but also a life journey shaped by patience, solidarity, and determination.

The graduates of our Department of International Relations are now ready to take new steps as individuals who question global developments, strive to understand differences, and are eager to contribute to society. Throughout these four years, we embraced not only knowledge but also values, critical thinking, and collective reflection. Each of them has truly earned this graduation.

We are proud of all our graduates and wish them a bright and fulfilling path ahead.
This farewell is not an end, but the beginning of new journeys.

We are glad our paths crossed. May your journey always be a smooth one.

On July 3, 2025, Istinye University’s Faculty of Economics, Administrative and Social Sciences celebrated its graduation ceremony, awarding diplomas to the Economics Department’s Class of 2024–2025. The event, attended by our faculty’s academic and administrative staff, graduates’ family members, and invited guests, was marked by great enthusiasm.
After a moment of silence and the national anthem, Rector Prof. Dr. Erkan İbiş and Dean Prof. Dr. Figen Yıldırım delivered speeches emphasizing that being an Istinye graduate is more than just earning a degree—it is a lifelong distinction. They also extended their best wishes for the new alumni’s future careers.
Diplomas were presented by Dean Prof. Dr. Figen Yıldırım and Department Head Doç. Dr. Çiğdem Gürsoy. The ceremony concluded with all graduates throwing their caps into the air in celebration.
Following the formal program, the Class of 2024–2025 shared heartfelt conversations and commemorative photos. We wish our graduates a successful and fulfilling career ahead.

As the Department of Economics at Istinye University, we held our fourth annual graduation breakfast today, bringing together our alumni and esteemed faculty members.

We once again felt proud of our graduates who are now successfully continuing their careers in leading public and private sector institutions across the country. Spouses, children, and siblings also joined the event, creating a warm and joyful family atmosphere.

We are truly happy to be part of an ever-growing and increasingly connected family.

We look forward to continuing this cherished tradition in the years to come and wish all our alumni continued success in their future endeavors.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Çiğdem Gürsoy, Head of the Department of Economics at Istinye University, delivered a seminar on “Recycling and Sustainability” to 5th, 6th, and 7th-grade students at Istanbul Girls’ Anatolian Imam Hatip High School.

The seminar was held as part of a community engagement project initiated by students from Istinye University’s Department of Child Development. Prior to the seminar, productive discussions were held with the school principal, Ramazan Ayaz, and vice principal, Özlem Eravcı, during which both parties agreed on the importance of developing a closer partnership between the university and the school.

As a result of these meetings, both institutions reached a consensus on organizing various projects and seminars within the school to support ongoing efforts in waste reduction, minimizing food waste, and promoting sustainability. This collaboration aims to strengthen sustainability awareness from an early age and foster environmental consciousness among students.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Çiğdem Gürsoy, Head of the Department of Economics at Istinye University, and faculty member Dr. İlayda İsabetli Fidan visited students completing their mandatory internships at their respective institutions.

During the visits, the faculty met with the supervisors of Zehra Gül Aslan, who is interning at MLPCARE Headquarters in the Investor Relations and Strategy Department: Derya Karadeniz, Umut Kater, and Gül İncemızrak. They also met with the supervisors of Nisanur Bektaş, who is interning at Bank Pozitif Headquarters: Corporate Lending Director İsmihan Ayanoğlu, HR Director Semra Çakaloğlu, Accounting Manager Hüseyin Armutçu, and Bilal Kara. Additionally, they had a productive meeting with Yaşar Kemal Bulutçu, Purchasing Manager of Özak Holding, where student Abdullah Burak Şen, after completing his internship, has started working full-time.

In all three meetings, the managers expressed their satisfaction with the students' integration into the work environment, their contributions, and their performance that met expectations from economics graduates. They also emphasized their willingness to collaborate with Istinye University in future internship and employment programs.

As part of the TÜBİTAK 1001 project titled “Cultural Heritage, Economic Development, and the Status of Women”, project coordinator Assoc. Prof. Dr. Esra Bayhantopçu from Kadir Has University and project team member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Çiğdem Gürsoy, Head of the Department of Economics at Istinye University, held a series of meetings in Edirne.

The meetings were attended by Edirne Mayor Av. Filiz Gencan Akın, heads of village mukhtar associations, directors responsible for women and family affairs, and women neighborhood mukhtars across the city. Discussions focused on the role of women in local development, preserving cultural heritage through women’s labor, and the structural challenges faced by women in local governance.

The project aims to transform women’s labor in rural areas into economic value, strengthen women’s participation in local administration, and contribute to the sustainability of cultural heritage.

Hosted by Elazığ Municipality, a seminar was held with the participation of Elazığ Deputy Mayor Nazif Bilginoğlu and Provincial Director of Culture Mehmet Karaaslan. In the event, Head of the Department of Economics Assoc. Prof. Dr. Çiğdem Gürsoy and Kadir Has University faculty member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Esra Bayhantopçu delivered a presentation titled “Women’s Handicrafts and Our Cultural Heritage.”

The seminar attracted significant interest from women participants and focused on the vital role of women’s labor in preserving cultural heritage and promoting local production. Organized within the scope of the TÜBİTAK 1001 Project, the event aimed to support women producers in the region and contribute to the sustainability of traditional crafts.

The project titled “Co-designing Learning for Evidence-based Climate Policy in Marmara’s Municipalities, Türkiye”, co-led by Prof. Dr. Ayselin YILDIZ, faculty member of the Department of International Relations, has been awarded funding by the British Academy. The project is co-led by the Institute for Development Studies (IDS), in cooperation with the Marmara Municipalities Union and Şişli Municipality. It aims to strengthen evidence-based knowledge systems that support effective and socially just climate adaptation and mitigation actions within and across urban municipalities in Türkiye’s Marmara Region.

As part of the project’s kick-off activities, the climate and sustainability units of Üsküdar and Kadıköy Municipalities were visited, where good practices were shared and discussed.

Prof. Dr. Ayselin YILDIZ, faculty member of the Department of International Relations, and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mustafa SUNDU, faculty member of the Department of Management Information Systems, delivered trainings on "The Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools" and "Intercultural Communication" during an event held in Ankara by ICMPD in the field of migration. The training included practical demonstrations of the current applications of AI tools.

The Internal Stakeholder Meeting of the Department of Health Management, Faculty of Economics, Administrative and Social Sciences, was held online on Monday, May 12, 2025.

In the meeting, which was attended by Prof. Dr. Hacer ÖZGEN NARCI, Dr. Gülhan KALMUK, and undergraduate students Nazlıcan USTA and Şeyma Zeynep AYNACI, our students shared their feedback regarding both the strengths of our program and areas for improvement. Afterwards, the extent to which our curriculum contributes to program competencies was discussed, as well as any new course suggestions related to the curriculum.

We would like to thank all members who participated in the meeting.

The conference event titled "Personal Health, Digital Transformation and Healthy Aging: Mobile Devices and Applications", organized by the Department of Health Management, Faculty of Economics, Administrative and Social Sciences at Istinye University, was held today.

The event took place between 10:30 and 12:00 in the Conference Hall V123 at our university's H Campus, with Associate Professor Dr. Gökhan AYDIN, 'Digital Innovation and Transformation Research Excellence Group Lead' from the University of Brighton, as the keynote speaker.

After the presentation, the event continued interactively with a Q&A session, and the Certificate of Appreciation was presented to our speaker by the Head of the Health Management Department, Prof. Dr. Hacer ÖZGEN NARCI.

We would like to thank Dr. AYDIN for participating as a speaker, as well as all attendees for joining us at the event.

Between May 15–18, 2025, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Çiğdem Gürsoy and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Esra Bayhantopçu from Kadir Has University held a series of meetings within the scope of TÜBİTAK Project No. 124K370. These meetings were conducted with officials from Hatay Metropolitan Municipality; President of the Hatay Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr. Hikmet Çinçin; Secretary General Mr. Ali Mullaoğlu; and Director of Project Coordination and Research, Ms. Ecem Gaye Yeşil. Additional discussions took place with Mr. Cengiz Şenkule, Director of Culture and Social Affairs of Antakya Municipality, focusing on local crafts and women’s labor.
Furthermore, conversations were held at the Hatay Culture and Artisans’ Bazaar—which includes 82 workshops, 7 restaurants, a cafeteria, a small cinema, and a meeting hall—regarding challenges and future expectations in the production and marketing of handmade goods, with the aim of revitalizing cultural heritage.

Organized in collaboration with the Department of Economics and the Economic Policy Research Center (EPAM), the 2025 ISU Women in the Workforce Workshop took place on May 13, 2025, at the Vadi H Campus Conference Hall. The event was part of the 21st Century Competencies Manifest 2 within the scope of the Career Journey course.

The online event titled “The Role of the Individual Pension System in the National Savings Mechanism,” organized in collaboration between the Economic Policy Research Center (EPAM) and the Department of Economics, was held on Tuesday, April 15, 2025, at 5:30 PM via Microsoft Teams.

Two outstanding students from Istinye University’s Department of Economics — Yusuf Efe Torun (1st year) and Sema Nur Yücel (3rd year) — have been selected to participate in the university’s prestigious Leader Student Program, marking a significant achievement.

The Leader Student Program aims to cultivate academically strong, self-confident individuals capable of making meaningful contributions to society. It offers a comprehensive training experience focused on developing intellectual knowledge, leadership, communication, critical and creative thinking skills.

As part of the Healthineering 2 – Sustainability Training event organized by the IEEE Student Branch Club at Istinye University on April 16, 2025, Associate Professor Dr. Çiğdem Gürsoy delivered a training session on the Sustainable Development Goals to students from Istinye University and various other universities.

The Department of Economics held its 2nd alumni meeting as part of the 2025 Spring Workshop. Our graduates and current interns shared their professional experiences with current students and high school participants.

As part of the Department of Economics Alumni Experience Meetings, our graduates Güney Özütutar and Hilal Teke shared their professional experiences with current students.

Department of Economics member Assoc. Prof. Ayfer Ustabaş visited the Politecnico de Guarda Institute as part of the Erasmus program.

Through the efforts of Assoc. Prof. Ayfer Ustabaş from the Department of Economics, and Dr. Eylül Beyza Çiftçi from the Department of International Relations, an Erasmus partnership agreement has been signed specifically for the Department of Economics with the University of Granada (Universidad de Granada).