Our PhD Students

Begum Buyuksavas Ozbudakli graduated as the top student of the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Izmir Economy University in 2018. During her undergraduate years, she completed her minor programme in Logistics Management and spent a semester in Germany at Albert Ludwigs University within the scope of the Erasmus program. In 2019, she began her master's degree in Political Science at Sabanci University with a full scholarship. During those two years at Sabanci University, she worked as a Teaching Assistant for the World History course. Her master's thesis focused on An Analysis of Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles from the Perspective of Domestic Audience Costs. Since her Bachelor’s degree graduation, Begüm has been working in the private sector as a Recruitment Specialist in the Human Resources field. Currently, she is pursuing her PhD degree in the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Izmir University of Economics. Her academic research interests revolve around arms trade, security studies, and international organizations.

Graduating from the Izmir University of Economics in 2017, Berfu SOLAK gained two B.A. degrees from the departments of Political Science and International Relations, and English Translation and Interpreting. Following her graduation, she completed her M.A. in Sustainable Energy Division at the Izmir University of Economics in 2019. During her master's studies, she worked as a project assistant and researcher in the EU 2020 ECHOES project. Currently, she continues her PhD in Political Science and International Relations at the Izmir University of Economics. Besides, she works as a research scholar in a TUBITAK project called “Challenges and Opportunities in the Arctic Region: Designing a Strategic Roadmap for Turkey”.

I received my BA in Business Management from Marmara University, which was followed by 9 years of professional experience in the private sector. After having received my MA degree in Political Science and International Relations department of Bilgi University, I started my Ph.D. in Istanbul Technical University in the Political and Social Thoughts program. Now I feel blessed to go on with my doctoral studies at the Izmir University of Economics in the Political Science and International Relations department. My studies of interest, among many, are Turkish politics, identity studies, politics of environment, and ethnic studies.

Deniz Özbek Özyurt was graduated from our department in 2009. In 2010, she received the scholarship of Secretariat General for EU Affairs (ABGS) and started the master program on the EU, International Relations and Diplomacy Studies at College of Europe. In 2011 she was graduated from this program. In 2019 she completed the master's program in International Relations at Galatasaray University. Currently, she is a PhD student at the Political Science and International Relations department at the Izmir University of Economics. Thinking to be specialized in the Political Theory field; she is interested in gender and sexuality studies and memory studies.

Born in Izmir, Ege Doğaç Erdoğan attended The American School in England (TASIS) for his high school education. He received his B. A from The George Washington University (GWU), majoring in Political Science, minoring in Philosophy, and History. Erdoğan began his studies at the Izmir University of Economics in 2018 as a PhD student in the Department of Political Science and International Affairs. In addition to being a scriptwriter, and an editor, Erdoğan takes an active role in various NGO’s and associations. He is the 2020 President of Junior Chamber International (JCI) Karşıyaka chapter.

Lingkai Kong gained a Bachelor's degree in Economics from Beijing Foreign Studies University, China in 2019, and a Master's degree in Economics and Quantitative Finance from the University of Zurich, Switzerland in 2021. He feels honored to pursue his PhD degree in Political Science and International Relations in Izmir University of Economics. He went to the University of Barcelona in Spain, Solbridge Business School in South Korea for exchange studies, traveled or participated in volunteer or academic activities in India, Sri Lanka, USA, and continental Europe. He speaks Chinese, English and Spanish. He is a member of the Board of the Alumni Association of Beijing Foreign Studies University.

Nazlı Ece Baltepe has received her Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy from Ege University, and her Master’s degree in Political Science and International Relations from the İzmir University of Economics with her thesis titled “Estonia's influence on the implementation of the European Union's Digital Single Market Strategy during its Council Presidency”. During her Bachelor’s studies, she spent a semester at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, and during her Master’s studies, she visited Niccolò Cusano University, both as an Erasmus+ exchange student. She also conducted a research internship at the University of Bamberg. Her research interests include the digital transformation processes in Europe, the emerging digital collaborations and their effects on the European digital transformation agenda, the global changes that are coming with the information revolution, and its effects and responses were given to it in the political and economic sphere. In addition to her formal studies, she is an active student who is an AEGEE (European Students' Forum) member since 2013, has participated in many international events/trainings/conferences as a full scholarship holder including the Bucharest Summer University organized by Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies in 2018 and Peace Conference of Youth in Osaka in 2016.

He received his bachelor’s degree in International Relations from the Middle East Technical University and completed a part of his undergraduate education at the State University of New York at Binghamton. He also completed a minor in history. He received his master’s degree in Middle East Studies from Middle East Technical University. He wrote his thesis on the Lebanese Civil War between 1975 and 1990. He is currently studying in the Political Science and International Relations Ph.D program at the Izmir University of Economics. He also participated in a variety of training programs in Australia, Canada, and the USA. Sunay’s areas of interest include Security Studies, Middle East Politics, and International Organizations. He speaks English and Arabic.

Dilan Elif Aksu completed her Bachelor’s degree in International Relations at Ege University. She received a master's degree in International Relations with her thesis on "The Role of the European Union on Separatist Movements in Europe: The Case of Basque Country and Northern Ireland" at Dokuz Eylül University. During her undergraduate studies, she was an exchange student in Poland and Hungary within the scope of the Erasmus program. As of 2022, she continues her Ph.D. in Political Science and International Relations at Izmir University of Economics. Her academic interests include European Union, Turkish Foreign Policy, and Political History.

After graduating from the Faculty of Political Science, International Relations Department of Ankara University, Gül Yalçın worked in Ankara and in different foreign capitals (Copenhagen, the Hague, Baghdad, Moscow and Sofia) as a career diplomat of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Türkiye for 20 years. Following early retirement from diplomacy, she completed her M.A. degree in the Faculty of Sociology, Department for Women and Gender Studies, of Hacettepe University. The focus of her M.A. thesis was gender and disaster risk management. She is currently a Ph.D. student at the Political Science and International Relations Department of the Izmir University of Economics and at the same time gives the course entitled “Diplomatic Correspondence” as a part-time lecturer. Her areas of academic interest include diplomacy, digital diplomacy, international relations, and gender.

Mustafa Murat Uluer graduated as the top student of the Department of Cinema and Digital Media at Izmir University of Economics in 2021. In the same year, he successfully completed a minor program in the Department of Sociology. He received his MA in Political Science and International Relations at Izmir University of Economics with a full scholarship in 2024, with a thesis titled "Neo-Ottomanism and Nation (Re)Branding in Turkey: The Case of Media". He is currently pursuing his PhD in the same department with a full scholarship and working as a researcher in a scientific research project (SRP) called "Populism in Pictures: A Comparative Analysis of Trump's and Erdoğan's Visual Communication". His academic interests include Critical Security Studies, Critical Media Studies, Turkish Politics, and Foreign Policy.

Ata Demirus graduated from our department in 2021. He earned his Master degree in 2024. Currently, he is a PhD student at the Political Science and International Relations at the İzmir University of Economics. His research areas are People's Republic of China, Asia-Pacific Foreign and Security Policies and Status-Seeking in International Relations. Some of his previous works include Shifts in China's Foreign Policy during Xi's Second Term: An Analysis from the Perspective of Hard-Soft-Sharp Powers; Polarity and Stability in International System, Facing the Past: Remembering or Forgetting? and China's Status Seeking in World Politics: The Case of Middle East

I received my Bachelor's degree in Social Services with a concentration in Community Development from Diak Helsinki UAS. I went on to earn my MA in Political Science and International Relations at İzmir University of Economics, where I completed my thesis on political theory, specifically on political participation and representation. Currently, I am pursuing a PhD in the same department, focusing on political theory and political memory studies. Among many of my research interests are Turkish politics, modern political thought and citizen-centered democratic theory. Contact information: anni.vihera@std.ieu.edu.tr