21 years of pride

Izmir University of Economics (IUE) celebrated the 21^st anniversary of its establishment with an event called "From Campus to Global Career", where internationally successful students and graduates were guests. Speaking at the online program, Mahmut Özgener, President of IUE Board of Trustees, said, “In a short time, the University reached a very good level, preferred by the most qualified young people of our country. One of the most important criteria of success for me is to raise young people who are preferred on a 'global scale'. We prepare our students for the future with these thoughts.”

Established on April 14, 2001 as the first Foundation University of the Aegean Region, Izmir University of Economics has left behind 21 years in its educational journey. With its 19,803 graduates, 9,815 students and more than 800 academics, IUE, which has made its mark among the largest educational institutions in Turkey, has organized a special event on its 21^st anniversary.

THEY TOLD THEIR SUCCESS STORIES

5 graduates and 1 student from IUE, who represent our country in the international arena in the best way, told their success stories in the online event held with the slogan ‘From Campus to Global Career in the 21^st Year’ and made recommendations to inspire young people. Mahmut Özgener, President of IUE Board of Trustees, IUE Rector Prof. Dr. Murat Aşkar, Emre Kızılgüneşler and Cemal Elmasoğlu, Members of the Board of Trustees, attended the event that was moderated by Prof. Dr. Ebru Uzunoğlu, Dean of IUE Faculty of Communication. The program was broadcast live on IUE's official YouTube channel.

WE WANT THE BEST, THE NEWEST

Speaking at the event, President Mahmut Özgener said that they brought Izmir University of Economics to a very good point in a short time. President Özgener said, “I have often stated that there could be no destination for universities; universities should always want the best, the newest. My goal has always been to create a university vision inspired by these thoughts and based on this awareness. We have shaped all our work regarding the University and the dreams we have for our students based on these thoughts. In a short time, we took the University to a very good point, preferred by the most qualified young people of our country, followed with interest. Considering undergraduate programs, we became the 4th most preferred Foundation University in Turkey with an occupancy rate of 97.61%.”

WE HAVE GRADUATES IN 39 COUNTRIES

Expressing that the only criterion of success is not to produce many projects or to increase the success ranking, President Özgener said, “One of the most important criteria of success for me is to raise internationally competitive young people who are preferred on a 'global scale'. We prepare our students for the future and motivate them with these thoughts. Today, we have hundreds of graduates in 39 different countries who represent our country and our university in the best possible way. We are proud of them.”

CAMPUS PROJECT IS ALSO VERY IMPORTANT FOR OUR COUNTRY

Giving information about the new campus project to be built in Güzelbahçe, President Özgener said, “The campus project is very valuable not only for our university and city, but also for our region and country. We started a ‘national architectural design competition) for the new campus project, which will further strengthen the position of the University and increase its international preference. The 19-person jury we created will choose among projects that adopt a modern, environmentally friendly, sustainable and state-of-the-art architectural approach. We see education as a whole, and we want our students to grow up as strong individuals both in social life and in the field of culture and sports. We are aware that this is only possible with a well-equipped campus that can meet all the needs.”

‘CAMPUS IZMIR’ SET AN EXAMPLE

IUE Rector Prof. Dr. Murat Aşkar stated that they have successfully implemented Campus Izmir, the first model of university-city integration. Prof. Dr. Aşkar said, “One of the most important components of this model is the 'Guaranteed Internship Project', which we have implemented with the support of the Izmir Chamber of Commerce. We reach more and more students every day with this project, where we provide internship opportunities to young people in companies suitable for their field of education, where they can apply the theoretical knowledge they have acquired at the University in the field. So far, the number of companies requesting interns from us has been 313, and the number of interns requested has been 731. Demands continue to come from companies. We will provide all students, who apply to the Project, the opportunity to perform internships in qualified companies.”

OUR EDUCATIONAL QUALITY IS CONTINUOUSLY INCREASING

Expressing that they carried out successful applications to increase the quality of education by using the technological infrastructure, Prof. Dr. Aşkar said, “As you know, with the pandemic, the concept of 'distance education' entered our lives. Thanks to the strong technological infrastructure of the University, we quickly adapted to this system. We established a system that 11 thousand people used every day during the difficult period. We are one of the universities that transitioned into distance education in the fastest and smoothest way. The research on our students has revealed that the general preference and satisfaction level is very high even during the pandemic period. We have brought in our country young people who take the mind and science as a reference, who are not content with what they have learned but constantly question, who do not give up working and researching to reach their goals. We will continue to work with determination by uniting on this goal from now on.”

WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE EVENT?

Melda Akın, the founder of the company 'D14.Al', who lives in Dubai. Alper Güler, who founded the company named 'QReal' in New York on augmented and virtual reality technologies. Damla Eytemiz, director of Driscoll Children's Hospital in Texas. Begüm Genç, an academic at University College Cork, Ireland. Pelin Yavuz, who works as the project team leader at APTIV in Poland. Assoc. Bekir Bostancı, a graduate student in Electrical and Electronics Engineering, who founded the company Advoard with his two school friends and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pınar Oğuz Ekim from IUE Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering.