BoÃÂaziçi University is a public research university in Istanbul, Turkey. Its main campus in Bebek is located just west of the Bosphorus, from which the institution takes its name. It is historically linked to Robert College, the first American college founded outside the United States.
Robert College was founded in Bebek in 1863 by Christopher Robert, an American philanthropist, and Cyrus Hamlin, a Congregational missionary. In 1869, the first campus (now the BoÃÂaziçi South Campus) was built on the ridge near Rumelihisarñ with permission from Sultan Abdülaziz.
According to a college catalogue compiled for the 1878âÂÂ1879 academic year, "the object of the College is to give to its students, without distinction of race or religion, a thorough education equal in all respects to that obtained at a first-class American college and based upon the same general principles."
After Cyrus Hamlin, the college was administered by George Washburn (1877âÂÂ1903) and Caleb Gates (1903âÂÂ1932). Established as an institution of higher learning independent of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM), though with a significant number of missionaries among its faculty in its earlier years, the college adopted an entirely secular and non-denominational educational model in 1923 in compliance with the new republican principles of Turkey.
Before 1971, Robert College, had junior high school, high school, and university sections under the names Robert Academy, Robert College, and Robert College Yüksek Kñsñm. In 1971, the Bebek campus and academic staff of Robert College were decided to be turned over to the Republic of Turkey to be transformed into a public university named BoÃÂaziçi University, the renamed continuation of Robert College's university section (i.e. Robert College Yüksek Kñsñm). The rest of Robert College moved into the Arnavutköy campus of the American College for Girls; despite continuing to call itself a college, it became merely a high school.
On 10 September 1971, as part of this transformation, Robert College bequeathed its Bebek campusâÂÂtoday's BoÃÂaziçi South CampusâÂÂcomprising 118 acres, along with its buildings, library, laboratories, facilities, personnel, and students, to the Turkish government. BoÃÂaziçi University was subsequently established as a Turkish public university. Since then, the university has gradually evolved from a small liberal arts college into a research university.
The rector serves as chief officer and presides over the University Senate and the University Executive Council. The Senate is the principal academic body, composed of vice rectors, deans, directors of institutes and schools, and members elected by the faculties. The University Executive Council, comprising the deans and members elected by the Senate, functions as the chief executive body. Each faculty, school, and institute maintains its own executive council and academic board.
At its inception, BoÃÂaziçi University had a president and administration answerable to councils and committees composed of faculty members. Both senior and junior faculty attended general assemblies where institutional decisions were made. Following the 1980 Turkish coup d'état, the newly established Council of Higher Education began appointing rectors to universities, including BoÃÂaziçi. In 1992, during the post-coup political normalization, the university's faculty proposed a rector election system. Under this model, faculty members voted for rector candidates, and the three candidates receiving the most votes were submitted to the Council of Higher Education, which forwarded one name, typically the top vote-getter, to the President of Turkey for formal appointment. BoÃÂaziçi faculty developed an informal agreement in which rector candidates who did not receive the highest vote would decline appointment if their name was forwarded instead.
In 2016, the President did not appoint the BoÃÂaziçi University candidate who received 86% of the faculty vote but instead appointed Mehmed ÃÂzkan, the deputy of the former elected rector. ÃÂzkan subsequently received a vote of confidence from the faculty.
On 2 January 2021, President ErdoÃÂan appointed Melih Bulu as rector, bypassing the faculty vote. The appointment was made under the authority granted to the presidency by the Council of Higher Education Law, which permits direct appointment of university rectors. The decision prompted protests by faculty, students, and alumni, during which more than 150 students were detained. The protests received international media coverage and statements of support from academics including Noam Chomsky, David Harvey, and Judith Butler.
Bulu was dismissed on 15 July 2021, and Naci ðnci was subsequently appointed as rector. Under the government-appointed rectors, the administration initiated disciplinary investigations against faculty members and restricted some student club activities, according to reports by Bianet and Diken.
BoÃÂaziçi University operates across seven campuses in and around Istanbul, each serving distinct academic or residential functions.
The South Campus in Bebek is the oldest and most historically significant site, retaining several buildings from the Robert College era â among them Hamlin Hall, Theodorus Hall, Dodge Hall, Albert Long Hall, and Kennedy Lodge. It functions as the university's main academic and administrative hub. Washburn Hall houses the Faculty of Economic and Administrative Sciences, Anderson Hall the Faculty of Science, Perkins Hall the Faculty of Engineering, and Sloane Hall the Psychology and Sociology departments. The Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence and the Natuk Birkan Building are also located here.
The North Campus is oriented toward science and engineering, accommodating the Faculty of Education, the Educational Technologies Building, the Computer Engineering building, and the Sciences and Engineering Building. It was previously home to the Aptullah Kuran Library.
The Uçaksavar Campus provides recreational and cultural facilities, including a stadium, gymnasium, the Lifelong Learning Center (BUYEM), and the Garanti Cultural Center.
The Hisar Campus hosts the Institute of Environmental Sciences alongside more than 20 classrooms, three amphitheaters, a cafeteria, an indoor pool, and a gym.
The Kilyos Sarñtepe Campus sits on the Black Sea coast and primarily serves as a residential site, with student dormitories and a private beach. It is notable for being the world's first energy self-sufficient university campus, generating all of its electricity from an on-site wind power plant.
The Anadolu Hisarñ Campus accommodates the School of Foreign Languages Preparatory Unit, along with dining, sports, and dormitory facilities.
The Kandilli Campus is home to the Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute and the Institute of Biomedical Engineering.
The Taà Âoda Music Festival, held every spring by university's Music Club, named after the club's studio on the South Campus.
Every May the BoÃÂaziçi Sports Festival is held at the South Campus and other university venues. Usually, some 300 to 800 students from all over the world come to compete in various events.
All undergraduate and graduate instruction at BoÃÂaziçi University is conducted in English, a tradition inherited from Robert College and maintained continuously since 1863. Incoming students who do not demonstrate sufficient English proficiency are required to complete the university's English Preparatory Program before beginning their degree studies.
In the 2026 QS World University Rankings, BoÃÂaziçi placed 371st globally, while ranking 88th worldwide in the QS Employer Reputation indicator â one of only three Turkish universities in the global top 100 in that category, alongside Middle East Technical University (77th) and Istanbul Technical University (91st). In QS subject rankings, it placed 217th in Social Sciences & Management and 236th in Engineering & Technology. The 2026 Times Higher Education World University Rankings placed it in the 401âÂÂ500 band.
BoÃÂaziçi hosts several dedicated research institutes, including the Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute, the Institute of Biomedical Engineering, the Institute of Environmental Sciences, and the Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence. It is a founding member of NeurotechEU, a European University alliance focused on neuroscience and technology. BoÃÂaziçi is also one of nine Turkish universities to have endorsed the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers.
Atatürk Institute for Modern Turkish History
Institute of Biomedical Engineering
Institute of Environmental Sciences
Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence
Institute of Film and Media Studies
Institute of Science
Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute
Institute of Social Sciences