Turkey

What does the word ‘turkey’ bring to your mind? Is it Christmas or Thanksgiving dinner? Or does it conjure up visions of a country that is steeped in history and spans Asia and Europe?

It’s the latter association that I want to talk about here. There is more than five thousand years of history in Turkey. Istanbul (formerly Constantinople, and earlier, Byzantium), the most famous Turkish city, sits on the Bosporus strait that joins the Black and Mediterranean Seas. The strait was bridged in 1973; before that it was necessary to go by boat between the European and Asian parts of the country.

On the European side, Constantinople was the capital of the Eastern Empire, the remains of the Roman Empire after the collapse of Rome in 410 AD. It has an incredible history in Greek, Roman, Christian and Muslim eras.

The Asian part of Turkey includes the country’s capital, Ankara. The land area is and has been known for some centuries as Anatolia or Asia Minor. The ancient city of Troy, that figures in Greek mythology, was located on its Mediterranean coast; the ancient city of Trebizond (now Trabzon), which was the final outpost of Roman and Christian culture, is on its Black Sea coast. If you travel around this part of the country you will encounter relics of Greek, Roman, Persian, Jewish and Assyrian cultures, as well as the more recent Moghul and Ottoman empires. There are Crusader castles, Roman amphitheatres, Greek temples, just to name a few.

Turkey today is a modern secular democratic parliamentary republic with a population of about 80 million people (similar to Germany) and an area of about 800,000 km2 (four fifths the size of Ontario). It has been a member of NATO since 1952, and negotiations are continuing for the country to become a full member of the European Union.

Our President, Dr. Feridun Hamdullahpur, who received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Mechanical Engineering at the Technical University of Istanbul, has stepped up plans to enhance relations between UW and several universities in Turkey.

Our Dean, Adel Sedra, recently visited four universities in Turkey: Bilkent University, Middle East Technical University, the Technical University of Istanbul and Yeditepe University. He was very impressed with the quality of all four schools. Their facilities and their programs are modern and up-to-date. Dean Sedra believes that our students would find a very easy fit in any of these schools and that they would benefit greatly from the exchange experience.

For some years we have had an exchange agreement with Bilkent University in Ankara. New agreements are coming on line with the universities that Dean Sedra visited, and other equally modern schools. It will become quite easy for UW Engineering students to study for a term or two in Turkey. Instruction at all our partner universities in Turkey is in English. The universities in which agreements are in place or in the late stages of completion are:

Bilkent University, Ankara: Bilkent is ranked among the top 200 universities in the world by the Times Educational Supplement rankings. Our exchange agreement has been recently renewed. Bilkent Engineering has four departments: Computer Engineering, Electrical and Electronics, Industrial Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering

Isik University, Istanbul: Isik is a new University, founded in 1996. However, it grows out of a long tradition of education. It has a modern campus on the Asian side of the Bosphorus in Istanbul. It has departments of Computer, Electronic, Industrial and Mechanical Engineering. “Empowered by its long heritage in education, Isık University envisions itself as a socially-responsible, world-class university that promotes the development of young generations which will enlighten the future.”(Isik Univ. website)

Istanbul Technical University (ITU): Istanbul Technical University is identified with engineering and architecture education in Turkey along with its 238-year long bright history, modern education environment and strong academic staff. With its highly evolved campus life, ITU prepares the students for the future (ITU Website). ITU has about 25,000 students, in a wider range of programs than ours.

Kadir Has University (KHU), Istanbul: KHU also new, founded in 1997. Its main campus located inside the ancient Byzantine walls, in a building first known as the Cibali Tobacco factory, itself of some renown, and completely renovated in 2002. The Faculty of Engineering has 4 departments: Computer, Electronics, Industrial and Energy Systems Engineering.

Middle East Technical University (METU), Ankara: METU has 14 Departments in its Faculty of Engineering, encompassing a broad spectrum of academic disciplines. It also ranks in the top 200 universities. It is similar in size to UW.

Özyeğin University, (OzU), Istanbul: OzU’s School of Engineering includes Computer Science, Electrical & Electronics, Industrial Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. OzU “view[s] the commercialization of technology and the creation of spin-offs and start-ups as a core activity. Specifically, [it focuses] on professional programs in business and engineering… [and] aspire[s] to be an international university and a regional center of attraction for exceptional faculty members and students.” (OzU web site). It appears to be a good fit with UW.

Yeditepe University, Istanbul: Yeditepe is a new university, founded in 1996. It is a very broad-based university with a dozen Faculties. The Faculty of Engineering and Architecture includes a wide variety of programs, from Architecture to Systems.

Turkey is both ancient and modern. If you have a spirit of adventure, consider expanding your world view by studying on exchange there. For further details, go to www.eng.uwaterloo.ca/~exchange, or visit the Faculty Exchange Office, CPH 1320, phone extension 33084.