The Sabancı University Professional Master's Program 2024 Commencement Ceremony was held on the Sabancı University Tuzla Campus.
The Sabancı University Professional Master's Program 2024 Commencement Ceremony was held on Saturday, October 12, 2024, on the Sabancı University Tuzla Campus. The ceremony, at which 240 students graduated, was held with the participation of Sabancı University President Yusuf Leblebici and Sabancı University Secretary General Ali Çalışkan.
Speaking at the commencement ceremony, Sabancı University President Yusuf Leblebici said the following: “We are very happy to be educating the highest quality students in Turkey in our master's and professional master's programs. We wholeheartedly believe that we are a university that best prepares students for the business world with the power of our truly interdisciplinary education approach. The success of our graduates confirms this belief and honors us. We are pleased to see that 97 percent of our graduates immediately start working in the sectors they prefer or continue their postgraduate and doctoral education in the country of their choice. Today, more than 32 percent of Sabancı University students continue their successful work abroad, in various countries around the world, in the most prominent companies and organizations. We are proud of our graduates who, after graduating from Sabancı University, have established their own businesses, achieved success worldwide, and are at the forefront of the worlds of science and art.”
President Leblebici, who stated that Sabancı University's goal is not only to be the best in Turkey, but also to take its well-deserved place as a true research university recognized and appreciated all over the world, announced the news that Sabancı University has been selected as one of the 5 major sites worldwide for the launch of the Global Curriculum for Anticipatory Leadership, within the scope of the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipation (GESDA), at the Professional Master's graduation ceremony.
In addition, Leblebici stated that the 'Future of Jobs 2023' report prepared by Sabancı University for the World Economic Forum in cooperation with TUSİAD had a great impact, and continued as follows: "Accordingly, it is seen that the most important developments that will create new job fields in the next five-year period are big data, artificial intelligence, and digitalization. This situation presents itself as both an important opportunity and a problem that needs to be overcome for our country. Sabancı University will continue to lead in implementing training programs that will best prepare its students for these new conditions."
Expressing that another mission of Sabancı University is to provide more added value to the national and global economy by activating mechanisms related to new generation business areas, Leblebici said: “The number of our successful graduates who have completed their doctoral degrees at the best universities in the world after graduating from Sabancı University and who have decided to return to us is also increasing. We are rightfully proud of them. For all these reasons, we wholeheartedly believe that the upcoming period will be a very exciting and beautiful period for our university. We will continue to create and develop together, remaining true to our motto,” and ended his words by wishing the professional master’s graduates success in their careers.
“Learning is a passion for me”
The guest speaker at this year’s commencement ceremony was Alpay Aydın, a 2022 graduate of Sabancı University’s Master of Business Administration. Aydın, who serves as the Cash Management Director at Yapı Kredi, has 20 years of sales and marketing experience. “Learning is a passion for me”, Aydın said, “My Sabancı University EMBA experience was incredible. There is no need to mention the quality of the institution and our valuable professors. It was very valuable to put the teachings you thought you knew back on the table, blend them with the experience you had, and interpret them again and learn differently. Likewise, it was a great experience to go through this process with the ‘best of the best’ people, as valuable professor Yusuf put it, selected from different sectors. With Sabancı University EMBA, we grew even more when we were in our 40s. On the other hand, with the return to school, we were able to become younger again when we were older, and this was very enjoyable.”
Aydın, who briefly mentioned how his personal career progressed in his speech, expressed the impact of his decision to pursue a master's degree when he was in his 40s as follows: “Right now, I am sitting in the chair I would have sat in before, much stronger, much more grown up in every sense, and I am reaping the fruits of the incredible experiences I have gained during this difficult journey. Of course, the journey will continue, in fact, we can say that I am just starting.”
Aiming to create a qualified workforce for the business world
Sabancı University's non-thesis master's programs for professionals are designed to create a qualified workforce. Professional Master's Programs consist of project-oriented, application-oriented courses in both engineering and management, especially for those who want to specialize in related fields.
Within the scope of the program, professionals are trained in two fields: Natural Science and Management Sciences. The Graduate School of Natural Sciences Science includes Information Technologies, Energy Technologies and Management, Digital Transformation in Industry, Cyber Security and Data Analytics programs that provide theoretical and sectoral application trainings. The programs strengthen the participants' professional competencies, technical infrastructure, solution-generating ability and global business competitiveness, while there are also courses aimed at providing professionals with these skills for the industry.
In Sabancı Business School, courses are given to provide advanced professional competence to executive candidates in the business world in fields such as finance, management and marketing with programs including Action Research and Transformation, Finance, Business Analytics, Marketing, Executive MBA (EMBA), Master in Business Administration (MBA), and Professional MBA (PMBA).
Opportunity to take courses from Columbia Business School faculty members
Designed to train top-level executives ready for global competition, the Graduate School of Business offers courses such as Executive MBA, MBA for Professionals, Finance, Marketing, Business Analytics for Professionals and MBA Program. Within the scope of Sabancı Professional Graduate Programs, educational trips are organized to Columbia Business School (CBS) in New York. During this trip, which is a mandatory part of the EMBA program, students take courses from CBS faculty members on Negotiation, Leadership and Entrepreneurship.
Sabancı University Executive MBA Program is among the world's best business programs
Sabancı Business School is among the top 100 business schools in the 2023 list of "World's Best Executive MBA Programs" prepared by the Financial Times (FT). Sabancı University, which achieved its best success to date by ranking 81st, has ranked first in Turkey in 8 different categories. Sabancı Business School is ranked 58th in the FT European Best Business Schools ranking.
Sabancı University has achieved significant success in the field of marketing master's degree by being ranked in the 91-100 band in the 'Best Universities for Business Graduate Programs 2025' ranking of the London-based higher education rating agency Quacquarelli Symonds (QS). It is also represented in the 101-110 band in the list of business analytics master's programs.