09/01/2026
The Foundations Development Directorate (FDD) held a program retreat on 12 December 2025 at Minerva Han in Karaköy, bringing together FDD instructors, administrative team and academic contributors for a day full of reflection, exchange and discussion. The Foundations Development Program Retreat (FDP Retreat) was organized as part of the Foundations Development Self-Evaluation Process, providing a dedicated space to review academic practices, student satisfaction and collectively shape the future of core curriculum at Sabancı University.
The main purpose of the retreat was to engage in critical reflection around the Five Core Curriculum Program Outcomes and to explore three guiding questions:
- How do course groups’ current or possible future objectives relate to the Core’s proposed new outcomes?
- What are potential new ideas for reformulating existing course frameworks in light of the rapidly changing higher education landscape?
- What are inspiring examples of assessment practices redesigned to cope with the transformation triggered by Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI)?
The retreat was designed around a participatory format to boost dialogue across stakeholders, in light of the interdisciplinary approach of the core curriculum, and our university’s institutional values. The resulting documents will bring together feedback and a new draft for the program outcomes, which would be presented to the Vice President Office (Education), as a part of the ongoing self-evaluation process. This would then be shared with the commission leading the self-evaluation process to be finalised as a guiding document for the core curriculum.
The morning sessions focused on the proposed new aims of the Core Curriculum to examine their relevance and alignment with evolving educational priorities of the FDD. In the afternoon, the retreat shifted to a format that coupled course group presentations with Q&As. Afternoon sessions created a dedicated space for exchanging course-level experiences, sharing innovative practices, and collective reflection on pedagogical development regarding use of AI and other relevant technologies within the Foundations Development Program.
Throughout the day, participants shared valuable information regarding student’s FDP experiences, best practices related to the FDP courses, discussed new approaches to supporting students’ academic development, and explored ways of staying aligned with state-of-the-art AI practices in higher education. The retreat also provided a rewarding opportunity to reflect on the achievements of the year, while openly addressing areas for improvement in pursuit of high-quality education.
The day concluded with a dinner gathering, offering a moment to celebrate a year marked by collaboration, innovation and shared commitment. FDP Retreat 2025 reaffirmed the FDD’s dedication to reflective practice, continuous improvement, and fostering a strong academic community grounded in dialogue and mutual, life-long learning.
