Department of Environmental Engineering
The Department of Environmental Engineering was established in 1991 within the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, with the aim of training engineers who work to protect and enhance environmental quality by applying the principles of engineering and science. The department's first undergraduate students began their education in 1992. The department consists of two main fields of study: Environmental Sciences and Environmental Technology. As of 2020, the department has a total of 21 faculty members and 2 research assistants.
In addition to the undergraduate program, the Department offers Master’s and Doctoral programs in Environmental Engineering at the Institute of Science (FBE) under the Environmental Engineering main field of study. The Master's program began in the 1994-1995 academic year, the Doctoral program in the 1995-1996 academic year, and the Non-Thesis Master's program was launched in the spring semester of the 2010-2011 academic year.
The Department of Environmental Engineering has a building with a closed area of 3600 m², containing 9 research laboratories (Solid and Hazardous Waste Laboratory, Water Pollution Laboratory, Biotechnology Laboratory, Wastewater and Basic Operations Laboratory I, Wastewater and Basic Operations Laboratory II, Environmental Microbiology Laboratory, Modeling Laboratory, Environmental Chemistry and Soil Pollution Laboratory, Air Pollution Laboratory), a General Student Laboratory, a Student Computer Laboratory, and 8 classrooms. The department building also houses a meeting/seminar room with a capacity of 26 people.
The Department aims to train engineers who can meet the needs of the 21st century, with a focus on quality assurance and internationalization. As part of this goal, since the 2015-2016 academic year, 30% of the undergraduate program is taught in English.
The Department offers opportunities for students to study abroad through bilateral agreements with various universities in Europe, enabling participation in the Erasmus program, and also accepts international students. Additionally, through the Mevlana Exchange Program, the department aims to facilitate student and faculty exchanges with higher education institutions worldwide. Since the 2009-2010 academic year, the department has also participated in the Farabi Exchange Program with other domestic higher education institutions.
The Department places significant importance on the accreditation of its engineering program by an independent external organization and its international recognition. Since 2012, the program has been evaluated and accredited by the Engineering Education Programs Evaluation and Accreditation Association (MÜDEK), which is the first national accreditation body for higher education in Turkey, officially recognized by YÖK, and a representative of the European Network for Accreditation of Engineering Education (ENAEE) in Turkey. The department has successfully undergone MÜDEK evaluations four times and is accredited until September 30, 2022. Furthermore, the Environmental Engineering undergraduate program has been granted the EUR-ACE label, which signifies international recognition under the European accreditation system, ensuring that graduates are recognized by educational institutions and employers in Europe.
MÜDEK accreditation ensures that graduates possess not only a solid engineering foundation but also the skills needed for teamwork, design, communication, project management, and other competencies. The Department continuously adopts principles of continuous improvement to train better-prepared and highly qualified engineers, thereby contributing to the welfare of society. It determines its educational objectives based on feedback from stakeholders (industry representatives, alumni, students, academic staff, etc.), designs its curriculum in line with these goals, measures, documents, and evaluates the results, and uses the evaluation results to improve the program, thus ensuring a process of continuous improvement.
