Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University (BAİBÜ)

Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University (BAİBÜ) is a public higher education institution established on 3 July 1992 and operating in the city of Bolu in Türkiye’s Western Black Sea Region. Located between two major metropolitan centers, Ankara and Istanbul, the university was developed within the framework of the “foundation-supported state university” model, combining state resources with support provided by the İzzet Baysal Foundation.

History

The university was established by Law No. 3837 and, since its founding, has developed its physical and technological infrastructure through the contributions of İzzet Baysal and the foundation he established. This structure, representing a third model alongside Turkey’s traditional state and foundation universities, has enabled over 120 facility and equipment investments within the campus as of 2023. The institution’s primary objective is to achieve contemporary civilizational standards by producing scientific knowledge of international quality, keeping pace with technological advancements, and providing research environments tailored to national needs.

Campuses

The majority of the university’s academic and administrative units are concentrated in the İzzet Baysal Campus, located approximately eight kilometers from the center of Bolu city, in the Gölköy district. In addition to the central campus, the university’s educational activities are carried out in units spread across Bolu’s city center and five of its districts: Gerede, Mengen, Mudurnu, Yeniçağa, and Seben.

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Academic Units

Academic and teaching activities at the university are conducted under the umbrella of faculties, institutes, colleges, vocational colleges, and units directly affiliated with the rectorate. The academic structure is as follows:

Faculties

• Faculty of Dentistry
• Faculty of Education
• Faculty of Arts and Sciences
• Faculty of Applied Sciences – Gerede
• Faculty of Fine Arts
• Faculty of Law
• Faculty of Economic and Administrative Sciences
• Faculty of Theology
• Faculty of Communication
• Faculty of Architecture
• Faculty of Engineering
• Faculty of Health Sciences
• Faculty of Sports Sciences
• Faculty of Medicine
• Faculty of Tourism
• Faculty of Agriculture

Institutes

• Graduate School of Education

Colleges

• College of Foreign Languages

Vocational Colleges

• Bolu Vocational College
• Bolu Technical Sciences Vocational College
• Gerede Vocational College
• Mehmet Tanrıkulu Health Services Vocational College
• Mengen Vocational College
• Mudurnu Süreyya Astarcı Vocational College
• Seben İzzet Baysal Vocational College
• Yeniçağa Yaşar Çelik Vocational College

Units Directly Affiliated with the Rectorate

• Department of Atatürk’s Principles and History of the Turkish Revolution
• Department of Turkish Language

Student Profile

A total of 31,525 students are currently enrolled at Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University.^【1】 Students are placed into undergraduate and associate degree programs based on scores from the Higher Education Institutions Examination (YKS), organized by the Measurement, Selection and Placement Center (ÖSYM). Additionally, there are programs that admit students through talent exams and international student admissions.

Programs

The university’s undergraduate and associate degree academic programs vary across faculties and vocational colleges.

Undergraduate Programs

In the field of medicine and health sciences, the Faculty of Medicine offers Medicine; the Faculty of Dentistry offers Dentistry; and the Faculty of Health Sciences offers programs in Nutrition and Dietetics, Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, and Nursing. In engineering and architecture, the Faculty of Engineering includes departments in Computer, Electrical-Electronics, Industrial, Food, Civil, Chemical, and Mechanical Engineering, while the Faculty of Architecture offers Architecture.

In the field of educational sciences, the Faculty of Education offers programs in Science Education, Primary Mathematics Education, English Language Teaching, Pre-School Education, Special Education, Guidance and Psychological Counseling, Classroom Teaching, Social Studies Education, and Turkish Language Teaching.

In the social and humanities sciences, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences hosts departments in Biology, Physics, English Language and Literature, English Translation and Interpreting, Chemistry, Mathematics, Psychology, Sociology, History, and Turkish Language and Literature. The Faculty of Economic and Administrative Sciences includes departments in Econometrics, Economics, Business Administration, Public Administration, Finance, and International Relations. The Faculty of Theology offers a Theology program with options in Turkish and Arabic.

In applied sciences and other fields: the Faculty of Applied Sciences – Gerede offers programs in Finance and Banking, Marketing, International Trade, and Logistics; the Faculty of Communication offers programs in Journalism, Visual Communication Design, Public Relations and Advertising, and Radio, Television and Cinema; the Faculty of Tourism offers programs in Gastronomy and Culinary Arts (Mengen), Tourism Management, and Tourism Guiding; the Faculty of Sports Sciences offers a program in Sports Management; and the Faculty of Law offers a Law undergraduate program. In agriculture and natural sciences, the Faculty of Agriculture provides education in Horticultural Crops, Plant Protection, Poultry Production, Field Crops, and Seed Science and Technology.

Associate Degree Programs

Vocational colleges offer programs that train mid-level personnel in technical, social, and health fields.

Bolu Vocational College offers programs in Banking and Insurance, Human Resources Management, Business Administration, Cooperatives, Accounting and Tax Applications, Healthcare Institution Management, and Tourism and Hotel Management.

Bolu Technical Sciences Vocational College focuses on Computer Programming, Electricity, Electronics Technology, Food Technology, Graphic Design, Interior Design, Automotive Technology, Landscape and Ornamental Plant Cultivation, and Textile Technology.

In the district campuses: Gerede Vocational College offers programs in Shoe Design, Computer Programming, Leather Technology, Business Administration, Chemical Technology, Machine Drawing, Fashion Design, Accounting, Automotive Technology, Private Security, Postal Services, Civil Defense and Firefighting, and Textile Technology.

Mengen Vocational College offers programs in Culinary Arts, Pastry and Baking; Mudurnu Süreyya Astarcı Vocational College offers programs in Business Administration, Poultry Production, Laboratory and Veterinary Health, Architectural Restoration, Forestry, and Tourism and Hotel Management;

Seben İzzet Baysal Vocational College implements programs in Smart Greenhouse Technologies, Plant Protection, Occupational Health and Safety, Social Security, Social Services, and Medicinal and Aromatic Plants.

Yeniçağa Yaşar Çelik Vocational College provides education in Foreign Trade, Food Quality Control, Construction Technology, and Logistics; while Mehmet Tanrıkulu Health Services Vocational College offers programs in Oral and Dental Health, Child Development, First Aid and Emergency Care, Medical Documentation and Secretarial Services, and Medical Imaging Techniques.

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International Activities

Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University supports student and academic mobility through international exchange programs, including the European Union’s Erasmus+ program, as well as the Mevlana and Farabi programs. Through collaborations with international organizations and joint projects, the university aims to enhance the global representation of its academic staff and provide educational opportunities to students from other countries.

Awards and Achievements

The university and its researchers have received numerous national and international awards and rankings.

THE 2021 World University Rankings: In the 2021 World University Rankings prepared by London-based ranking organization Times Higher Education (THE), the university was ranked among the top 1527 institutions from 93 countries and entered the list of the world’s best universities. Additionally, in THE’s “University Impact Rankings 2020,” it ranked among the top 200 globally and fourth in Türkiye in the “Quality Education” category.^【2】

Accessible University Awards (2020): At awards organized by the Council of Higher Education (YÖK), the Gölköy Campus won the Orange Flag in the “Physical Accessibility” category and the Blue Flag in the “Socio-Cultural Accessibility” category.^【3】

URAP Academic Performance Ranking (2022–2023): According to data from the University Ranking by Academic Performance (URAP) Research Laboratory, the university rose seven places in the national ranking based on academic performance, publication count, citation numbers, and project volume, reaching 44th place among Turkish universities.^【4】

TEKNOFEST 2025 Turkey Championship: At the 2025 Aviation, Space and Technology Festival TEKNOFEST, the team “PAT5” composed of Architecture students Reyhan Tuana Özcan, Esmanur Zorba, Mehmet Arda Özbay, Aysun Çelik, and Öykü Düzenli won first place in Turkey in the “T3 Foundation Pavilion” category of the Architecture and Visual Design Competition. The award was presented by the President of Türkiye.^【5】

7th Bolu-Düzce R&D Project Fair Awards (2025): At the event organized by the university and its stakeholders, awards were presented in various categories:

• İzzet Baysal Incentive Award and El Cezeri Category First Place: Muhammed Eyüp Kaya for the “PrintHere” project.
• Prof. Dr. Fuat Sezgin Young Innovators Category: First place awarded to Esra Karakoç for the “Adımlarla İyileşme” project.
• Ali Kuşçu Science and Research Category: First place awarded to Prof. Dr. Arzu Özcan İlçe for the “Borlu Wound Care Cream” project.
• Young Minds, Big Ideas Competition: Gülşen Taşkıran won first place in the Science and Engineering category; Meryem Nur Mesut won first place in the Health Sciences category; Gül Gizem Aytekin won first place in the Social Sciences category.^【6】

Student Life

The İzzet Baysal Campus includes facilities that meet students’ academic, social, cultural, and sporting needs. Throughout the year, various cultural events are held in the campus’s conference center and halls. Facilities established through collaboration between the İzzet Baysal Foundation and the state include a semi-Olympic swimming pool, sports halls, tennis courts, and football fields. Additionally, dormitories operated by the Credit and Hostels Institution (KYK) and various social service areas provide accommodation and support for students within and around the campus boundaries.