18/06/2026
The Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) Competition 2026 and Research Awards Ceremony, organized by Sabancı University Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, was held with high attendance at the Sabancı University Cinema Hall.
The 3MT® (Three Minute Thesis) competition, which encourages doctoral students to present their research to a general audience in just three minutes, aims to support doctoral students in reaching wider audiences with their work and effectively conveying the importance of their research.
The opening speech and moderation of the event were undertaken by Duygu Kuzuoğlu Öztürk, a faculty member of Sabancı University Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences. The ceremony was attended by the Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Erkay Savaş, and the Vice Dean, Burç Mısırlıoğlu, as well as numerous academics and students.
Following the presentations, the first prize in the 3MT® competition was awarded to Cemile Uslu, a student in the Molecular Biology, Genetics and Bioengineering PhD Program.
In the competition, the Runner-Up Award and the People’s Choice Award went to Nihan Birgün, a student in our Materials Science and Nanoengineering PhD Program. The judging panel consisted of Burç Mısırlıoğlu, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences; Şerif Aziz Şimşir, Deputy Dean of Sabancı Business School; Özgür Gürbüz, Member of the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences; Aytül Erçil, Network Faculty Member of the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences and CEO of Vispera; and Talat Durgut, Director of SUATT.
The Dr. Gürsel Sönmez Research Award was given to Aras Efe, a graduate of our Manufacturing Engineering PhD Program, and Hamide Suluyer, a graduate of our Mathematics PhD Program.
The jury for this award included Burç Mısırlıoğlu, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences; and faculty members Duygu Kuzuoğlu Öztürk, Esra Koca, Ferruh Özbudak, Melih Türkseven, Özgür Gürbüz, and Selmiye Alkan Gürsel.
The Prof. Durmuş Ali Demir Memorial Award was presented to İdil Bayar, a Computer Science and Engineering Program student, and Can Çoruh, a Materials Science and Nanoengineering Program student, in the undergraduate category, and to Veysel Oğulcan, a PhD student in Molecular Biology, Genetics and Bioengineering, in the graduate category. The award evaluations were carried out by a jury consisting of Burç Mısırlıoğlu, Vice Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences; Ersin Göğüş, Member of the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences; Ferruh Özbudak, Member of the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences; Mehmet Özgür Oktel, Faculty Member of the Physics Department at Bilkent University; Oğun Adebali, Member of the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences; Tuğrul Senger, Faculty Member of Izmir Institute of Technology; and Zafer Gedik, Member of the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences.
