OSTİM Technical University's traditional Iftar program brought together academics, government officials, and business leaders.
In a program where a film about Iftar in Gaza was shared with the guests, Tasneem Lubbad, a Palestinian war victim and a Master's student in International Business Management at OSTİM Technical University's Institute of Social Sciences, and her friend Ahlem Seyam, recounted the oppression they experienced at the hands of Israel to the participants.
OSTİM Technical University Rector Prof. Dr. Murat Yülek reminded that OSTİM Technical University is the first and only university in the world directly established by industrialists.
Drawing attention to the fact that the concept of industry is not correctly perceived in our country, Rector Yülek said, “Industry is the key to wealth, enrichment, and development. The world's largest companies are industrial companies, the world's richest people are industrialists, and the world's richest countries are industrialized countries. In our country, industry is defined as a place where children are sent if they don't get an education. This understanding needs to change.”
Yülek noted that OSTİM Technical University, as a young university, is only in its 7th year but has already achieved significant successes. Sharing the university's rankings based on the YÖK 2025 Report data with the participants, Yülek stated, “We rank 15th out of 201 universities in the rate of our graduates finding their first job. We rank 11th in Turkey in the number of awards received in competitions organized by institutions such as TEKNOFEST, TÜBİTAK, and TÜBA. We rank 7th among universities with the highest rate of publications in journals and books indexed in the Web of Science database through international collaborations. Furthermore, we have reached the threshold of 700 publications in WOS and 1000 publications in SCOPUS in terms of internationally qualified indexed publications; we are a research university that is steadily increasing its academic output.”
“We believe that our international students will shape the destiny of their countries together with Türkiye.”
Highlighting OSTİM Technical University's strong international vision, Prof. Dr. Murat Yülek noted that they host 2,600 international students from 85 countries. Yülek stated, "This multinational structure, where different cultures learn and produce together, makes our university a significant education and research center not only nationally but also globally."
Expressing his views on international students, Yülek stated, “Tomorrow they will go back to their own countries and become engineers, managers, and politicians. We believe that when they reach decision-making levels, they will shape the destinies of their own countries together with Turkey. This is how we conduct our education.”
“Let’s compete in patents and utility models”
Rector Yülek stated that the university also demonstrated strong performance in the fields of university-industry collaboration and innovation, saying, “We have 78 patent and utility model applications within our Technology Transfer Office; 11 of these have been registered. We also have 30 international patent applications. In the field of design, 15 out of 18 applications have been registered. These figures show that our university is not only a producer of knowledge but also a structure that commercializes and transforms knowledge into value.”
Highlighting the impact of patent and utility model studies on the country's development, Yülek invited universities to compete in patent and utility model research, saying, "Let there be competition among our universities in the field of patents and utility models; let's compete so that our country's technology develops."
“Entrepreneurship should be a part of our students' souls”
Professor Dr. Murat Yülek, stating that entrepreneurship is not just a course but a fundamental approach permeating the entire academic structure at OSTİM Technical University, noted the following: “Our students in all faculties and departments take entrepreneurship courses, and even in their first year, they present their ideas to investors at the Pitching Day event, connecting with real business people and investors. What we want our students to have as part of their spirit is to be entrepreneurial. Being an entrepreneur doesn't just mean starting a company; it can mean being an entrepreneurial civil servant, academic, or member of parliament. We say that if you don't develop a product, you haven't fulfilled your duty to your country.”
Orhan Aydın, Chairman of the OSTİM Organized Industrial Zone Board of Directors and Chairman of the OSTİM Technical University Board of Trustees, pointed out that OSTİM Technical University was established with the accumulated knowledge and experience of the people of OSTİM, and noted that OSTİM is investing its resources in education and technology.
“Together we can create new technologies”
John Silver, Education Attaché at the United States Embassy, expressed his pleasure at attending the OSTİM Technical University iftar program and spoke about a new program implemented by the United States.
Attaché Silver, explaining that the US is seeking new partners in areas ranging from education to technological development, said, “As the US, we can produce together and create new technologies together. This year we will celebrate the 250th anniversary of independence. We will also celebrate the 100th anniversary of US-Türkiye relations. We have been together for a hundred years, and I hope our friendship will continue in the future.”
Former Chief Ombudsman of the Public Ombudsman Institution, Şeref Malkoç, also stated that they were proud of the achievements of OSTİM Technical University.
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