Dogus University Ranked 14th Among 93 Universities

As a result of the successful and industrious endeavor of the Dogus Education Foundation, which was established by the Dogus Group of Schools in 1995, Dogus University was founded by the Act of Parliament, 4281, passed the by Turkish Grand National Assembly on 9 July 1997.

Dogus University, now celebrating its 14th year, has twenty departments and twenty-five undergraduate programs in total.
Due to Dogus University’s ERASMUS (Erasmus University Charter) membership, which started in the spring term of the 2003/2004 academic year, students of Dogus University can benefit from exchange student programs in accordance with Bilateral Agreements signed with over 30 universities.

In terms of the quantity of academic publications (as determined by SCI + SSCI + AHCI index), Dogus University ranked 14th among 93 universities, 78 places above other universities in question. Prof. Dr. Mitat Uysal, Rector of Dogus University, answered TURKOFAMERICA’a questions.

What is the advantage of a university whose founder has a background in education, as does Dogus?

Anything that is done with love brings success. Founded fourteen years ago, the aim of Dogus University has always been to ensure quality in education. The founder of the university and President of the Board of Trustees, Mr. Dogu Gözaçan, has dedicated his life to education and youth. The staff of Dogus University perform their jobs enthusiastically and in full sensitivity towards educational responsibilities. President Gözaçan’s educational background enables him to be fully aware of the general requirements in this field. This awareness leads to a structure in the institution, which brings our success. The university takes full responsibility in its administrative and academic issues. I should say that Dogus University is a very healthy and a happy family.

In the past it was generally accepted that students in Turkish Foundation universities come from relatively affluent backgrounds. However, it has become increasingly apparent that there are more scholarship students at private universities than at public universities. What is the percentage of scholarship students at your university?

At Dogus University we believe in the importance of equal access to education and as a result, we offer scholarships to a large number of students. In the 2010-2011 academic year 29.9% of Dogus students received scholarships.

Why do students prefer Dogus University?

At Dogus University our educational programs are all based on the needs of science and the modern world.  We constantly update our programs according to these needs.  Our project- based approach in education helps ease our graduates into getting a start in the business world.  In this way we prepare our students for the working world by establishing various relationships in the sectors that our students are trained for.  They are faced with real life problems before they graduate.  Obviously, this allows our students to develop themselves through practice and be successful in the business world in a short period of time.  It is no surprise that our approach has put Dogus graduates in high demand in many sectors.

Dogus University graduates develop sound perspectives in different fields due to consistent benchmarks of success and they are the individuals who are selected in the global employment market. Students who choose Dogus University are fully aware of this privileged position. In addition to this, we are a city university. This both allows students convenient access to the university and provides opportunities for them to participate in cultural, artistic, sport and social activities. Furthermore, their daily lives are not just confined to academic study. The university is in the center of Istanbul, which as you well know has a global reputation. We are only five minutes away from the seaport, theaters, cinemas, shopping center and fitness clubs. In brief, our students benefit from the opportunity to develop maturity and broader intellectual perspectives alongside their professional knowledge and skills.

For private universities in general but especially for Dogus University, in the next ten years what can be expected? After completing the accreditation process, what are you planning to do in order to increase your involvement and participation in the international education setting?

Globalization is a trend that will undoubtedly continue for the next ten years.  Our objective is to prepare our students appropriately in all fields, including Information Technology and the English language.  This will enable them to look for and find jobs throughout the world market. We hope to distinguish our current students from others who study at similar institutions around the world by giving priority to a highly disciplined educational system. Private universities are flexible in their structure in order to integrate all of the newest opportunities and resources.

Therefore, as I mentioned earlier, our focus is to further improve our current programs and to recruit young and dynamic academicians to these programs. We want to continue to guide our students so that as graduates they can easily follow the ever-changing world of technology and develop their own qualifications necessary for the world of business. For instance, in logistics, a field which is gaining popularity every day, we started a Doctoral program called Logistics and Supply Chain Management.  It is the only one of its kind in Turkey. We are trying our best but we know that we still have a lot to do.

Although foundation universities are non-profit, at the same time there is a need for serious investment and research and development in order to meet student need. What are the conflicts between being a non-profit university and meeting the ever-increasing demands of the modern era?

The main source of income for a Foundation university is student tuition. We take into account both the expenditures of running the current system and the mission of our university in all our plans to provide new and innovative opportunities for our students. This planning requires very critical and systematic problem-solving. The experience of the members of the Dogus family since 1974 has helped us make significant contributions to such planning.

This may be one of the hardest questions for a Rector to answer.  Each university has departmental areas of strength. So what are the departmental areas of strength for Dogus University on a national and international level?

The aim of our departmental development is not just to build a name, but rather to make a meaningful and effective contribution to academic knowledge and to bring real benefits to society.  Dogus University graduates are molded to do just that. We are always mindful that high quality education requires the right combination of high quality staff, high quality facilities and high quality services. Dogus University strives tirelessly to achieve and maintain the standard of excellence in education in Turkey and in the world. To address your question directly, I can say that all departments of our Faculty of Engineering, Psychology Department, Economics and Finance Department and Mathematics Department are among our greatest areas of strength.

I have noticed that there are some academicians within your faculty who have come back to Turkey from the U.S.  This reverse brain drain is really important for Turkey.  What would you like to say on this subject to Turkish academicians abroad?    

Yes, at Dogus University we place great importance upon this subject.  We want to hire people who have recently completed their PhDs abroad to our faculty, and we regularly do this.  For example, we are being really careful in regards to this issue while forming the teaching staff for the newly-founded Mechanical Engineering and Control Engineering departments.  Our new faculty members in the school of Economics and Administrative Sciences, and in the Arts and Sciences department, also have these qualities.  We provide all kinds of support to these people; they give us great dynamism and there’s a huge increase in the number of projects in these departments as a result.  Through them we also cooperate with the educational institutions they have come from abroad.  I would certainly recommend contacting us to those who want to come back and teach in Turkey.


Young Scientists who have completed their doctoral and post-doctoral studies in United States continue to excel in their research projects at Dogus University

The Department of Mechanical Engineering at Dogus University started undergraduate programs in English and Turkish in the academic year of 2008 – 2009. There are currently over 150 enrolled students in both programs. Faculty members in the department have a wide range of research interests including biomedical sciences, mechanics, fracture mechanics and renewable energy. The biofluid mechanics group in the department focuses on problems in the cardiovascular system. The group specializes in computational modeling of diseased hearts in order to understand how the forces exerted by the circulatory system contribute to heart diseases. The group is also interested in developing precise flow quantification techniques that will help with the diagnosis of heart problems. Another medical study is concerned with increasing the efficiency of dental root canal treatments by using the results of computational fluid dynamics analyses. The results of these medical projects will contribute to the development of medical techniques. These projects are performed in collaboration with national and international universities including Cornell University, Marmara University and Dicle University as well as dental practitioners and cardiologists. In addition to biomedical projects, other ongoing projects are related to energy storage systems for improving utilization of renewable energy resources, numerical estimation of fatigue crack closure for application to airplane body and wing structures and design and remanufacturing of the historical Turkish Bow from composite materials.