9th International CO-OP Summit Held

Bahçeşehir University, the architect in Türkiye of the CO-OP Project that brings universities and the business world together in many countries around the world, hosted the International CO-OP Educators Summit, held each year in a different member country.

Bahçeşehir University continues to open the doors of the business world to university graduates by bringing together Eastern and Western civilizations in education. The summit, held every year in a CO-OP member country, took place for the first time in Türkiye, at Bahçeşehir University.

The 9th International CO-OP Education Summit, which began on Wednesday, 20 June and lasted 3 days, was attended by 300 delegates from 22 countries. The summit, held to help universities connect with a better, higher-quality business world, brought together world universities and the business world.

At the summit, which brought together the world's leading universities, professors, scientists and prominent business figures, Bahçeşehir University's contribution to this partnership in Türkiye was particularly highlighted, and it was noted that it was meaningful for Istanbul, which connects two continents, to host the summit.

Delivering the opening speech of the summit, World Association for Cooperative Education (WACE) CEO Dr. Paul Stonely thanked in particular Ömer Yücel, who made CO-OP a first in Türkiye, and Süleyman Demokan, Dean of the Bahçeşehir University Faculty of Engineering, for their contributions.

A CO-OP OFFICE WILL OPEN IN ISTANBUL

WACE Co-Chair William Howard stated that the CO-OP project increases the likelihood of all graduates succeeding in their careers and that this work continues with an ever more innovative approach, and announced that a local CO-OP office will also be opened in Istanbul.

While it was noted that more than 100 of the companies cooperating with the CO-OP project in Türkiye are international, Bahçeşehir University International CO-OP Director Zeynep Yener stated that 5,000 graduates have entered working life through the CO-OP project, which started in Türkiye in 2009, and that job opportunities have also been created in other developed countries.

Expressing his happiness that both Istanbul and Bahçeşehir University are hosting another international event, Enver Yücel, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Bahçeşehir University, said, "We are working to reach the very top in education. We are doing our best to bring industries to the university, because we need to change our education system. That is why we invite the world's leading brands to teach at our school. Because as a country, we need good engineers and good businesspeople."