Our university hosted the International Staff Week events organized by the Erasmus+ Institutional Coordination Office between May 8-12, 2023.
A total of 48 academic and administrative staff from Albania, Montenegro, Morocco, Palestine, Jordan, Moldova, Georgia, Sudan, Somalia, Ghana, Ethiopia, Nepal, the Russian Federation, Ukraine, Algeria, the United Kingdom, Lithuania, and Poland participated in the event.
Attending the opening ceremony, Acting Rector Prof. Dr. Hakan Yekbaş thanked all participants and organizers who visited the university for International Staff Week in his opening speech. Yekbaş further stated that the university will continue its efforts towards its internationalization goals without slowing down.
The Head of the International Relations Office, Prof. Dr. Ali Aksu, gave an updated overview of the university's internationalization strategy. He stated that they collaborate with numerous universities in 33 different countries outside the European Union and work to increase the university's international recognition through various events. He also mentioned an increase in the number of international students, with approximately 4,000 foreign undergraduate and postgraduate students from around 85 different countries. Aksu highlighted the significant role of the Erasmus program in the university's internationalization, mentioning that they have dual degree agreements with universities in Azerbaijan, Iran, and Tunisia in addition to Erasmus agreements. He noted that they are one of the universities in Türkiye that receives the most funding for Erasmus projects, receiving approximately €400,000 in grants annually. Aksu thanked the entire Erasmus team and participants for their contributions to the program and expressed hope for future international projects and collaborations.
On the second day of the program, May 9th, participants presented their universities. Additionally, seminars were given by Lecturer Murat Ercan from the Erasmus+ Institutional Coordination Office on "Digitalization in Internationalization" and by Lecturer Emre Seven on "Intercultural Communication".
The program continued with academic and administrative visits throughout the week, tailored to the participants' areas of expertise. On Thursday, May 11th, excursions to Gürün and Kangal were organized. The program concluded on May 12th with a closing ceremony attended by our Rector, Prof. Dr. Alim Yıldız, where participants received their certificates.
We would like to thank the volunteer students from ESN Cumhuriyet (CS) and Cumhuriyet Erasmus Club Community who supported the events.