Selim Yuna

MA in International Relations program was truly an enlightening experience. Not only I had the enormous pleasure of excelling in social sciences through a wide curriculum but also had the opportunity to complement my professional experience with further insights. I had the privilege of being in the classes of high caliber open-minded academics who appreciated contributions arising from professional experience in addition to in-class performances and assignments.  
The liberating and motivating atmosphere in the program encouraged me to entangle myself in a very complex topic for dissertation and yet I was able to succesfully complete it. This exhilarating journey could not be possible without the contributions of a profoundly knowledgeable mentor and the relatively extensive collection of Bilgi library.
Even after 20+ years of professional experience, this program was instrumental to re-ignite my passion for social sciences.
Selim Yuna

Lilit Gasparyan

In my 3rd academic year of studies in law in Armenia, after my second visit to Istanbul, I decided to change my field of study. I eventually found myself in Paris, doing Turkish studies. Even though Yerevan State University had a Turkish Studies programme, my objective was to learn about a neighbor country from a third party’s perspective. The goal was well chosen! Between my undergraduate studies in Paris and my graduate studies in Turkey, there were 6 years full of experiences, emotions, frustrations, all of them in Turkey. As a journalist in Agos weekly newspaper, correspondent for the Armenian TV channel I had a chance to prove my knowledge of the country, exploring the hidden layers of Turkish Society. As a result of these long and full years my next aim was to understand Turkish Foreign Policy much more deeply. Istanbul Bilgi University was the only right place for me to start my next academic journey as an Armenian from Armenia in Turkey. With a full scholarship from the University, I had the honor to meet great professors and classmates, each of them becoming an added value to my personal development and my carrier. From the very beginning that was clear - my thesis would not be related to my identity. Therefore, I chose the topic which was not really studied even in Turkey - “Who makes Turkey’s foreign policy? The main actors of the AKP era”. Choosing my master’s thesis adviser was equally a crucial decision: I decided to not follow the traditional approach of writing our thesis with the “oldest” professors, and decided to opt for one with the greatest experience in the field. What a chance it was for me to work with him. Istanbul Bilgi University made me feel that borders are very artificial! Besides the diploma and knowledge, the University offered me the opportunity to gain Turkish friends out of my classmates, individuals who now hold a special place in my life. If you want to discover and surpass yourself you should live the experience of Istanbul Bilgi University.  
Lilit Gasparyan

Onur Alp Yılmaz

I am Onur Alp Yılmaz. Currently, I am a Ph.D. Candidate in History of the Turkish Republic at Ankara University and part time instructor at Işık University as well. As a result of growing up with political parents, I have been interested in politics since my childhood. During my high school years, I was appointed as school representative, and I organized some events on behalf of the Republican People’s Party (CHP). It was my first step in politics. When I started university, I was strongly committed to Kemalist values, the founding principles of the Turkish Republic. My nationalist feelings were strong. I also had a distance with the Kurdish issue, which always required dialogue and social consensus. The lectures during M.A. years provided so much narrative-breaking insight to me. First of all, in the lecture on European and Migration, I was exposed to how nationalism has destroyed the civilizations at the same time, and how the same civilizations recreated themselves by consensus and cooperation. Secondly, in the lecture on Regional and Comparative Studies, I was exposed to the fact that states with a social democratic heritage had more democratic political culture and parties with intra- party democracy. Turkey lacked both unfortunately. Thirdly, in Political Philosophy, I learned the historical process of modern ideologies, and I investigated their effects on states’ political cultures. Lastly, I had to face the reality that not all other cultures are those of conflict like Turkey, and there are cultures of consensus as well. In this entire process, my non-academic interest in politics has gradually become an academic interest. This new academic interest encouraged me to get involved in deeper research on the Kurdish issue and curbed my bias about the subject. Eventually, I ended up writing and defending my M.A. thesis on the political party CHP, which I am a member of, and its discourse on the subject matter of my earlier bias, the Kurdish question under the title of “CHP’s Discourse on the Kurdish Question: Continuities or Ruptures?” My major purpose was to follow the CHP’s approach on the Kurdish question over the years, with reference to the official reports of the party, with a qualitative perspective. I conducted in-depth interviews with the political actors of the party, who had responsibility in the writing stage of these documents. Additionally, an analysis of domestic political dynamics was given with their repercussions on the preparation and announcement process of these reports, in order to show how the political environment affected the CHP’s attitude on the Kurdish question. In doing so, my thesis shed light on the processes of Kurdish movement’s politicization, ruptures and continuities of the CHP’s discourse on the Kurdish question, as well as the effects of external and internal factors on the CHP’s position on the Kurdish question.
Onur Alp Yılmaz
 

Dilale Dönmez

I received a bachelor's degree in International Relations from Bilgi University in 2017. During my undergraduate education, I had the opportunity to take several elective courses from many different areas in the discipline. Through these courses, my interest in the Political Science discipline increased and with the encouragement of faculty members, I realized that I want to continue in academia. M.A program is an important stage that prepares you for both academic career and business life. I wanted to complete my M.A education at Bilgi University in order to prepare myself for an academic career, becoming familiar with the discipline, and explore my own areas of interest in the Political Science. The core courses that the program offers and faculty members in the program have been the source of my preference. I became familiar with the field of International Relations and Political Science by completing the core courses at Bilgi University’s M.A program. More importantly, I had the opportunity to work with many reputable faculty members from different interests and I benefited from their experiences and their knowledge. With the guidance of the professors in the program that work in different research fields, I had the opportunity to read and explore different fields before starting my thesis project. During my M.A education, professors encouraged me to join conferences. Through conferences, I gained experiences. Moreover, my thesis study has been a very special and unique experience for me. I understood that the crucial thing in the thesis study is the guidance of the advisor. The field research I carried out under the guidance of my advisor at Bilgi University led me to notice my passion. During the year I was writing my thesis, I realized what I wanted to do and how I could contribute. In this way, the M.A program I completed at Bilgi University, especially the thesis I wrote under the guidance of my advisor, both showed me what I wanted to do and reinforced my belief that I could do it. Bilgi University helped me cross my path with reputable professors and the M.A education I received helped me to draw my way in academia.
Dilale Dönmez

Nurul Fitri Lubis, UNHCR in Indonesia

I had interest on International politics since I worked with the United Nations in Democratic Republic of Congo. Despite my technical education background in architecture engineering, the jobs I had, gave me opportunities to interact and collaborate with multi-national and multi-cultural actors who contribute to keep the peace and shape the path to sustainable socioeconomic recovery in the country. Beside observing the ongoing war, I also noticed the large number of refugees coming from neighboring countries due to series of arm conflicts that caused millions of people displaced. Peace, conflict, and refugees were my favorite topic when I had constructive discussions with my colleagues. In 2016, I took an important decision in my life. After working for more than one decade, I decided to have a break to pursue the master’s degree. I already knew the subject that I wanted to pursue, it was International Relations. When I decided to study, Istanbul, one of my favorite cities in the world, pop up in mind. MA Program in International Relations at Istanbul Bilgi University came across after a long search. I discovered that the curriculum and the expertise of lecturers at the university fit my interest. Particularly, there were two things that I want to achieve from this program: gaining new insights from academic perspective on peacekeeping and refugees’ issue and experience the life as an international student. Studying at Istanbul Bilgi University, I got more than I wished. I met great professor who later became my thesis adviser. He has academic expertise in international peacekeeping, with field experience in international organizations. It was such an honor to work with him. Lately, as the biggest refugee host nation in the world, I had chances to meet Syrian refugees in Turkey to exchange perspective and stories. Additionally, the university provided sport facilities (its swimming pool was my sanctuary), and thousands of books and academic journals from reputable sources. Though I did not meet country mate from Indonesia at the university, I never felt alone. Turkish and international students coming from all over the world who I met at the university were supportive and motivating. We even created study group out of class to discuss the difficult issues that we discovered from the classes. Moreover, as former architect and photography lover, I explored countless historical places and buildings in Istanbul with my camera and obtained an honor to have one my photograph hang on the wall of university, on photography contest organized by International Students Office. My study time at Istanbul Bilgi University was one of the best moments in my life. If I had a chance, I would love to experience it again.