Ataturk University Rector Prof. Dr. Ömer Çomaklı attended the Research Universities Collaboration Meeting hosted by the Middle East Technical University.

The meeting, led by, the President of the Council of Higher Education (CHE), Prof. Dr.Erol Özvar was attended by Presidential Budget and Strategy Head İbrahim Şenel and the rectors, vice-rectors of 23 Research Universities, and the managers of the relevant units.

Stating that one of the policies implemented within the scope of the restructuring of CHE is to ensure specialization in universities, Prof. Dr. Erol Özvar, in his speech at the opening of the meeting, used the following expressions: “I would like to share with you an important development for Turkish higher education and especially for our research universities. As it is known, we planned a special support program for research universities with the protocol we signed with the Presidency of Strategy and Budget. Today, we are implementing the Research Universities Support Program with the meeting we held at METU. According to this; Effective from this year, financial resources will be allocated to Research Universities annually by the Presidency Strategy and Budget Department, according to the results of the performance evaluation to be made every year by CHE. Research universities will be able to use this resource allocated to them to support scientific research projects in the fields they are matched by CHE. This year, a resource of 100 million Turkish Lira will be transferred to 20 state universities to be used in research projects. As CHE, we will follow the results of this resource. We will make new performance evaluations based on the results.”

President Prof. Dr. Özvar: "This Support Given to Research Universities Is Very Meaningful”

Emphasizing that this support given to Research Universities with the contributions of the relevant units of the state and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in an environment of global economic crisis is quite meaningful. Dr. Özvar said: “We would like to thank all our relevant units, especially our President, for their financial and moral support to our Research University project, which is an important step for the country's higher education and will accelerate the competition with world universities. I wish the meeting to be a good one," he said.

Rector Çomaklı: “The Support of our President of CHE for Research Universities is a Source of Motivation for Us”

Stating that the studies carried out as a result of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's innovative vision and science-based perspective on higher education in the country brought about a radical transformation and change, Atatürk University Rector Prof. Dr. Ömer Çomaklı, on the other hand, said that the Research University project implemented in this context is the driving force for universities.

Rector Çomaklı stated that he believed that Atatürk University and 22 other Research Universities will be among the top 500 universities in the world in a short time, thanks to both the academic facilities and the wide opportunities in the budget. As a whole university, we believe that the process of change and development, which gained momentum with the title of University, will carry Atatürk University to the desired point. Today, witnessing once again the support of our CHE President towards Research Universities has been a separate source of motivation for us. As we have been serving the country's higher education successfully for 65 years, we will continue to work, produce and use the produced information for the benefit of the society in the company of our Research University mission and the high sense of belonging of all our members.”

CORPORATE COMMUNICATION DIRECTORATE – 06.06.2022