Weekly Press Release of Istanbul Gelisim University (March 15-19, 2021) 

Abstract

BY A DOYEN - Journey from Istanbul Academy of Economic and Commercial Sciences to Istanbul Gelisim University!

I graduated from Sultanahmet Commercial High School and had the opportunity to study at the Istanbul Academy of Economic and Commercial Sciences (Marmara University) in 1965. This academy, like its counterparts in Europe, was established in 1883 for the purpose of training personnel due to the developing commercial activities in our country. I took courses on business, economics, accounting, law, commodity knowledge, etc. As a young person, I first learned about the communication, attitude, stance and attitude of our professors with students in higher education. Even though his behavior is “harsh”, I still remember his mastery of the subject in lessons and some of the humorous current examples he gave on the subject. In addition, the advice of our teachers about life was also instructive. In particular, I always remember the saying, “A good teacher is the person who adds strength to the podium instead of getting strength from the pulpit. I have tried to apply this maxim in my life until today. Some of our professors at the academy had completed their doctorate abroad. The fact that they shared this with us also impressed me and created a desire to pursue a doctorate abroad. It was difficult for me to realize this under the conditions of that day. Seeing a small scholarship announcement from the Ministry of Education in a newspaper was the step for the realization of my desire. Coincidentally, the World Trade College in Vienna, where I went to study for my doctorate, was established for the same purpose in almost the same years. This school operates today as the Vienna University of Economics and has an important place in the world. This place became a window to the world for me. I had the opportunity to understand the people of different countries, to learn their thoughts and to identify prejudices. Today, I advise and encourage my students to take advantage of other opportunities, especially Erasmus. I believe that various conflicts between countries can only be eliminated if the world people understand each other. I returned to my country in 1981 and was assigned to Erzurum Atatürk University by the Council of Higher Education (YÖK) to fulfill my compulsory service duty. This was a good opportunity for me to get to know my country as a person who was born in Istanbul and has not gone beyond Ankara. For this reason, I always advise my students to get to know our country and our people. I became an assistant professor and associate professor at Atatürk University. I transferred to Marmara University in 1993. I worked as the director of Marmara University Social Sciences Vocational School for 4 years. I tried to learn how to be an executive. For me, students were at the forefront and solving their problems and ensuring their satisfaction was always my priority. I have always maintained this attitude: “Don’t ask for someone else that you don’t want it to happen to yourself!” I always acted with understanding; I advised and preached my professors, assistants and students the same. I came to Istanbul Gelisim University in 2013. After 4 years as the director of the School of Applied Sciences, I still continue to work as the head of the department. Here, I share and apply my knowledge and experiences that I gained during the journey I briefly explained above, in order to achieve the goals of our university. If I can contribute to the realization of the goals of our university, which has made great improvements in a short time, I will feel happy.

Prof. Dr. Orhan İşcan School of Applied Sciences Head of Management Information Systems Department