3 BS Alumni

Seyma Gürel graduated with honors from the Department of Civil Engineering in Özyeğin University in 2018. Seyma dedicated herself to her research career that began during her undergraduate studies with Dr. Zeynep Başaran Bundur. At Özyeğin University, Seyma worked as a research assistant and received a TÜBİTAK scholarship while still an undergraduate, contributing to projects focused on self-healing concrete and the improvement of concrete rheology using bacteria.After completing her undergraduate studies, Seyma decided to further pursue her interest in construction materials by enrolling in a Master's program in materials engineering. She was accepted into the Mechanical Engineering master's program at Koç University, where she continued her research on high-entropy alloys.

Upon completing her master's degree, Seyma proceeded to pursue a Ph.D. at ETH Zurich's Department of Civil Engineering, continuing her academic career. Currently, she is conducting research on digital concrete production at ETH Zurich. Throughout her educational journey, Seyma actively participated in various student clubs. Alongside other founding friends at Özyeğin University, she established a volunteer club, leading various aid projects and providing support to sister schools.

Ece (ME), works as a Senior Specialist Engineer in the Truck R&D department of Mercedes Benz Turk A.S. company. As part of her job description, she contributes to the development of electric heavy/medium truck concepts. Gaining experience in the application areas of engineering during her internships, Ece received training in automotive design in 2015 and completed 2 separate design projects during this time. Afterwards, she studied at Pforzheim University as an exchange student with an Erasmus+ scholarship. Between May-October 2017, she worked as a TÜBITAK scholar in the project titled "Dynamics of Drops That Hit Moving Surfaces and Its Use in Surface Coating and Spray Technologies".

In her undergraduate thesis, she worked on the optimization of the anti-roll bar of Mercedes heavy class construction site trucks. With this work she did with her teammate, they won the third prize in the 7th automotive R&D project market and component design competition in 2018. Within the scope of the same project, they also transferred their work to an academic article and this study was published in the International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition (IMECE), one of the largest mechanical engineering conferences in the world.

After her graduation, she started to work for TUSAŞ Motor Sanayii A.Ş. as a Structural Analysis Engineer. Between the years 2018-2022, she worked in the TEI-TS1400 Turboshaft Engine Development Project, which is Turkey's first type certificated original and national engine. She returned to the automotive sector as of April 2022 and still continues her work at Mercedes Benz Türk A.Ş.

Asya (IE) completed her bachelor’s degree with a double major in Industrial Engineering and International Business Administration and Trade at Ozyegin University. During her time at Ozyegin, she excelled academically while actively involved in various extracurricular activities. She served as a Teaching Assistant for several courses and actively participated in the TUSIAD Sustainability Development Forum. She started being involved in research projects and publications. Furthermore, she took on leadership roles as a board member and president of the Outdoor Sports Club, fostering a sense of community and promoting an active lifestyle among her peers. She is also an alumni of the Turkish Entrepreneurship Foundation.

Continuing her education, Asya pursued a master’s in Operations Research at North Carolina State University. During her time at NC State, she took on leadership roles within the Turkish Students Association, serving as vice president and president. Her academic contributions and dedication were recognized through various awards, including the College of Engineering Graduate Merit Award 2019, the University Graduate Fellowship 2019, and the ISE Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award 2023.

Currently, she is pursuing a Ph.D. in Transportation Systems, Civil Engineering at NC State, with an anticipated graduation in August 2023. Her research areas include Sustainable Transportation Systems, Humanitarian Logistics, Network Optimization, and Data Analytics. Her Ph.D. thesis focuses on traffic incident response network design, routing optimization, and incident hot-spot prediction. Starting in the fall of 2023, Asya has been offered a tenure-track Assistant Professor position in Business Analytics at Le Moyne College in Syracuse, New York.