Alumni
Bekir Uzun
Five years ago, I decided to join BİLGİSports family with the intention of spreading my passion for sports to every moment of my life. With the pride of fulfilling the dreams that I had during my undergraduate education, I continue this journey and as a BİLGİSports graduate, I look to the future with more hope.
Thanks to BİLGİSports’ international and comprehensive education program, I had the opportunity to volunteer in sports events such as UEFA Super Cup 19, Euroleague One Team, and WTA, and also represented Türkiye and Istanbul Bilgi University with my friends in international competitions like SportsPro Hackathon.
During my final year, as part of compulsory internship, I observed and applied the foundational and innovative knowledge I acquired in theory in the field while I did my internship at the Turkish Basketball Federation and Possible Agency.
After graduating as a dual major student in the Department of Sports Management and Advertising Program, I went to London as part of the Erasmus program and had the chance to intern for nine months at 4Global, a sports consulting and technology company.
Currently, I am very happy to have been granted a full scholarship to The GOALS Master Program, jointly organized by universities in five different European countries, and I am getting ready to embark on this adventure. While following my passion, İstanbul Bilgi University and BİLGİSports have been the turning points in my life that have transformed me and brought me to where I am today.
Ataberk Aşkın
I started the Department of Sports Management at İstanbul Bilgi University in September 2016. During the first year of my academic life, I worked on my English in English Preparatory Program to better prepare myself for life after graduation.
In 2017, when I began my freshman year in the Department of Sports Management, there was a lot of things to be learned about the sports industry. Over the course of four years, I took advantage of volunteering opportunities provided by my University such as the basketball All-Star event, Basketball Turkey Cup, Brand and Sport Summit, Çağla Büyükakçay-Maria Sharapova match, and youth basketball camp organizations to expand my network. In my sophomore year, I did an internship at the Turkish Tennis Federation and increased my practical work experience. During this time, I managed to maintain a high GPA and was admitted into the Advertising minor program in early 2019. The year 2021 marked my final year at the university.
During my senior year, I seized the internship opportunity offered by our University and completed a 10-month internship in the Marketing Directorate of the Turkish Basketball Federation. This allowed me to reinforce many of the things I learned in the Department of Sports Management and Advertising minor program. In June 2021, I successfully completed both the Department of Sports Management and the Advertising minor program. After graduation, I did an internship in the Sponsorship and Event Management Department at Garanti BBVA Headquarters, which helped me expand my network and knowledge.
In October 2021, I entered the professional world as the administrative assistant for the newly established Fenerbahçe Women's Football Team. In this role, I actively participated in various administrative tasks, including athlete licensing, team travel planning, special match ticketing, administrative staff and technical team management, athlete equipment procurement, women's football team communication, and marketing.
After approximately one year, I left Fenerbahçe Sports Club and started my new role as a Marketing Communication Specialist at Misli.com. At Misli.com, I am actively involved in company campaign communication through TV, radio, newspaper, outdoor advertising, and sponsorship management.
From the days when I entered İstanbul Bilgi University in September 2016 to the present, I would like to express my gratitude once again to all the instructors who have contributed to my journey. I am so thankful to BİLGİ!
Onat Karabıçak
I think I graduated from the university that I could receive the best sports management education in Turkey. I’ve been interested in sports since my childhood. When I saw the announcement of the BİLGİ Sports Management Department talent exam, I applied without hesitation. I didn’t want to miss the chance to study in a field that I interested in. BİLGİ provided me with the opportunity to improve myself in my field, to get to know the sector, to take lessons from and meet with the industry leaders. One of the major advantages of the department was the chance to gain experience in many different areas of the industry before graduating, with the various internship and volunteering opportunities provided. While I was still a student, I had the opportunity to work in the world's biggest sports organizations, such as the UEFA Super Cup Final and the UEFA Champions League Final. In addition, I had the chance to observe our international competitors with the experience of international projects and the Sport International Program, which brings together sports management students from 4 different countries. Thanks to the support given to the students in the department, we have succeeded in realizing the "MODEL BİLGİSpor" project, which is a student project and aims to give this experience to sports management candidates.
Currently, I continue my postgraduate education on Football Business in Johan Cruyff Institute and at the same time working at Turkish Tennis Federation as International Relations and Project Development Specialist. I can say that BİLGİSpor is definitely the right choice for those who want to deal with sports management professionally.
Saadet Nehir Aytuğ
I graduated from Istanbul Bilgi University Department of Sports Management in June 2019. During my education, I took several courses on sports focused marketing, strategic marketing, property management and organization management, digital media communication in sports, and brand and identity management in sports. In my 11 year of professional volleyball career as a player, I took an active role to represent our country in many international tournaments in addition through various age groups, in addition to some clubs like UPS and TVF 2nd League Volleyball Team. In 2019, due to my chronic injury, I left the Çanakkale Metropolitan Municipality team, which is the first league teams I was transferred, to end my professional sports career. My main areas of interest are marketing, digital media communication, and brand and identity management. As an individual who is highly motivated, open to self-improvement and has been active in sports both on and off the field, I have a career planning where I can strengthen this formation that I have gained in the sports sector and develop myself in line with my interests. Studying undergraduate education at Istanbul Bilgi University Sports Management Department offered me the opportunity to meet many important people from different branches and departments of sports, to take lessons from very valuable teachers and to do internships in leading institutions of the sector. In sports, which is one of the largest sectors in the world in terms of my student years, money volume and the audiences it addresses, it was a process that helped me a lot in deciding in which fields and departments I could more easily exhibit my skills in sports. In my business life, I understand better what my school, which provides education with the motto “It should learn for life, not for school” contributes to me.
ULUĞ İZGİ / Sports Management (Major) - Child Development (Minor) 2019 Graduate
One of the most important aspects of studying BİLGİ Sports Management was that it provided training with a team of instructors who lead the department, who have proven themselves in the sports industry and are role model in their field. In addition to the training provided, there existed the opportunity to participate in international events during study, which contributed to our development in terms of organization management with activities where we could gain an innovative perspective and made observations in practice. As a result of the combination of the interactive trainings during 4 years and internship for the whole last year, I could improve in subjects such as marketing and event management. I can take responsibilities and make the necessary decisions within the management of Darüşşafaka Sports Club, where I am currently working as Sports Schools Supervisor. I feel the difference of being a part of the BİLGİ Sports Management Department family in every sense.
Istanbul Bilgi University enabled a new start in my life. By offering all the necessary opportunities to prepare for my professional life, it made a great contribution to my university period in the best way possible.
TİBER UZUNOĞLU
I’m experiencing the the advantage of graduating from Istanbul Bilgi University, Sports Management department since the day I graduated. One of the biggest privilege provided by my department was that it offered the opportunity to experience in different areas of the industry until I graduate. During my 4-year education, I gained lots of experiences through internships, volunteering and international seminars. I had the opportunity to observe the progress of sports management not only in our country but also in other countries of the world. I gained experience with internships at companies such as Garanti BBVA, Sportsnet Group, Turkish Airlines and Real Betis Balompie. Thanks to these opportunities, I decided in which direction I would shape my career through and in which field I would like to take part in sports, which is one of the largest sectors in the world. Besides, I had the chance to have an idea about what awaits me in my professional life after my graduation while I was continuing my education.
I am currently pursuing my professional career as an account executive at the Sportsnet Group, where I had the opportunity to experience an internship before. In addition to having the opportunity to work closely with brands that support sports, I am happy to use the knowledge I learned during my education life. After graduation, I once again understood how suitable was the sport management department for me and what a right decision I made for my professional life.
VALERİ BAHAR
They always ask about the most memorable moments of the university years. For me these moments involved the campus, friendships, one-to-one relationships, communication with my teachers, and of course the organizations I attended during these years.
I am about to finish my 5th year in my Bilgi University journey and I feel happier everyday for studying these majors in this university. As my adventure here is about to come to an end, I realize that there are so many exciting things waiting for me in business life. I have entered this university studying Sports Management as my major and later I began to study Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation as my second major.
I have been an athlete since I was born and having being able to improve my interests and even create new areas of interests by studying here has felt like a great luxury. I have loved studying in these two departments and I feel like loving what I have learnt will make me more successful in my business career. Thanks to Cem Tınaz, the Director of Sports Management Department, I have had the chance to learn about all the fields of sports industry, to meet and work with the important people in this industry. Also, huge thanks to Hülya Şişli, the head of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Department, for helping me build a solid foundation for becoming a visionary physiotherapist.
I’m currently working in a private hospital in İstanbul as Physical Therapy Coordinator. Both as a manager and a physiotherapist, my goal is to pass on my creativity and knowledge into the business world. I have developed my enthusiasm for research, my curiosity’ and my scientific point of view in Bilgi University and I would like to keep them throughout my career. I also know that it is a privilege to be able to come back to my school, to my teachers and to know that they will help me through my next journey.