This catalog aims to inform prospective graduate students about the many outstanding graduate study opportunities at Bilkent University.

In line with our founding motto, "excellence in teaching and research," Bilkent University believes that graduate education plays a central role in a research university. As such, from the beginning Bilkent has allocated, and continues to devote, the scholarships and resources necessary to create a fertile environment for advanced study and research.

Graduate study involves three major components: exploring a discipline in depth through course work, gaining a mastery of the contents and methods of a field of specialization, and eventually contributing to the knowledge in that field. The main ingredients of an environment that fosters the development of graduate students along these lines are the presence and accessibility of a distinguished faculty, well- equipped research laboratories and library-facilities, and up-to-date communication and computing facilities. The following pages of this catalog demonstrate that such an environment exists at Bilkent.

Accumulation of expertise and facilities on a campus becomes especially meaningful and productive if complemented by the presence of a pool of talented and motivated students. Therefore, we welcome applications from students who are academically well-prepared and ready to take up the challenges of frontiers research and modern scholarship. Several types of financial support are available to qualified graduate students. Additional information may be obtained at Bilkent’s website, http://www.bilkent.edu.tr

Zeki C. Kuruoğlu
Professor and Associate Provost