Dear students! Welcome to our department,

Istanbul University Faculty of Economics Department of Political Science and International Relations has a deep-rooted academic infrastructure that on-going education and training activities at the undergraduate, graduate and doctoral levels in the light of an accumulation of knowledge of nearly 70 years. Being a partner of this accumulation with us means not only participating in a qualified academic education process, beyond that, but also being a member of big family.

Our department is also based on the interdisciplinary academic tradition of the Faculty of Economics, which celebrates its 80th anniversary. Therefore, lectures in the fields of Economics, Finance, Numerical Methods and Business are also included in our curriculum. Our students can take the core curriculum in different disciplines of social sciences from an elite academic staff, and they can have a multi-dimensional analytical perspective that prioritizes analytical and critical thinking, addressing a broad historical plan apart from global, current scientific issues.

The Department of Political Science and International Relations is structured under two different departments as Political Science and International Relations. In the Department of Political Science lectures on political theory, political thought, comparative politics and Turkish political life, while in the Department of International Relations it is aimed that our students gain a multidimensional perspective on phenomenons and problems through courses on International Relations theory, global politics, political economy and regional studies.

In our department, there is an English preparatory year application and in order to graduate, our students are obligatory to take at least 30% of their total courses from the lectures given in this language. In addition, language courses in two different languages, German and French, are included in our curriculum. At the same time, we offer our students the opportunity to receive academic education abroad via Erasmus and Mevlana exchange programs.

Dear youth,

We have a rich experience as Turkey's oldest state university. To our experience, we add our increasing national and international activity and distinguished graduate profile that expanding and gaining international character over time both in the public and private sectors and academy. Apart from academic education, as the Department of Political Science and International Relations with the social and cultural opportunities we offer you in our campus located in the most historical district of Istanbul, we continue to be one of the prestigious departments in Turkey with you.

Prof. Dr. Ahmet Öztürk

Chair

Istanbul University Faculty of Economics Department of Political Science and International Relations provides undergraduate, graduate and doctorate levels of education.

In the first two years of undergraduate education, students learn economic theory, economic history, public finance and law-based curriculum of the Faculty of Economics, while the academic program of the last two years cover five sub-areas: international relations, comparative politics, political theory, political history and politics of Turkey. Our main goal is for students to gain an intellectual depth, critical thinking and a world view that is open to diverse and alternative perspectives and work as a team. For this purpose, our department provides a training and research formation based on multidimensional, critical, theoretical and methodological pluralism, open to differences and based on interdisciplinary knowledge.

In addition to the introductory courses in different fields such as Political Science, International Relations and Political and Social History, students take advanced courses such as political economy, democratization, gender and identity policies, political regimes, political theory, comparative politics, European Union, Middle East, Central Asia, history of Ottoman Turkey and Turkish political life that are aimed to do extensive research on different subjects.

Students can elect courses offered by an expert faculty, who are becoming increasingly successful and well-known each year, with guest lecturers’ contributions. Students concentrate on their areas of interest in the third year of the undergraduate program.

Graduates of the department find wide career opportunities in the public and private sectors at home and abroad. In addition to various organizations of the United Nations and the European Union, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other public institutions, there are career opportunities in universities, media, political parties, non-governmental organizations and private companies.

The department’s faculty has a strong background in scientific research at prestigious universities in Turkey and abroad. They are following the latest information and developments in their respective areas, and they are in constant contact with scholars and institutions worldwide.

Our students have the opportunity to study for in different countries and have academic experience abroad during their undergraduate education through student exchange programs such as Erasmus, Mevlana. The department also provides our students with opportunities to do masters and doctorates in different universities at home and abroad thanks to their relations with other national and international interactions. Each year a growing number of our students are admitted to graduate programs and get scholarships for postgraduate studies in many prestigious public and private universities in Turkey and abroad. Our department started education in English in the 2015-2016 academic year. The department offers 30% of the courses in English and students receive preparatory English education for one year before undergraduate education.

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2019 YKS Data

The Last Person's Score With 0.12 Coefficient:  350,75776

Success Order of Last Person Placed with 0,12 Coefficient:  94,796

General Quota: 100

Top Student Quota: 3

The Department of Political Science and International Relations is a part of the Istanbul University Faculty of Economics, founded in 1936. The foundations of our department, in line with the interdisciplinary nature of Istanbul University Faculty of Economics which is Turkey's pioneer and one of the oldest institutions, were laid in 1948 with the chair created under the name "Discipline of Political Sciences". It was restructured as the Department of International Relations with the regulation made in 1982. Our department, which was closed in 1999, was reopened in 2004 and was renamed as Political Science and International Relations Department. 

Professor Dr. Esat Çam (1929-2003) is the founding president of our department. Professor Dr. Toktamış Ateş (1944-2013) was the head of the department between 1996 and 2011. Professor Dr. Nevin Ateş (1958-2015) served as the head of department between 2011 and 2015. Prof. Dr. Haluk Alkan, who started working as head of department in 2015, handed over his duty to Prof. Dr. Ahmet Öztürk as of 10.01.2020.

OUR MISSION

The Department of Political Science and International Relations aims to educate students helpful to nature, world community and Turkey, who can bridge between past and future with their wide knowledge and creative, critical and reformist methods to bring about more sustainable and ethical path to humanity, and can put forward new interpretations, theories and approaches to the field of Political Science and International Relations. One of our mission as a department is to conduct researches that question social and political matters utilising multiple languages with an international viewpoint. It is our objective to raise individuals who follow world and Turkish politics closely to critically analyse and offer solutions to the global and national problems. Department graduates find career opportunities in the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other state institutions; United Nations, European Union and other international organizations; in international and local civil society organizations, in multinational organizations, in media and in universities.

OUR VISION

The vision of the Department of Political Science and International Relations is to train individuals who are qualified in the national and international arena, shape the future and responsive to local and global issues. Our department is compatible with the globalizing world thanks to its different academic disciplines togetherness. In this direction, our department approaches contemporary world problems in both theoretical and practical areas of the discipline. In addition, our department has adopted the principle of making a difference in the field with its well-established history and qualified academic personnel. Establishing a mutual relationship between students and academic personnel throughout the education and training process is also a part of this principle. From this aspects, our department offers university life that includes a vision of thinking together, productive and confidential to our students. When considered from all this point of view, our department directly contributes to the social sciences covering the political, social and economic fields.