Galatasaray University

Galatasaray University
Galatasaray University
Established	1481-1868-1923-1992
Type	Public
President	Ethem Tolga
Admin. staff	200
Undergraduates	2000
Postgraduates	500
Location	Istanbul, Turkey
Campus	Urban
Colors	Red Yellow
Mascot	Lion
Website	Official Website

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

For other uses of Galatasaray, see Galatasaray (disambiguation)

Galatasaray University or Université Galatasaray (Turkish: Galatasaray Üniversitesi) is a Turkish university established in İstanbul, Turkey in 1992, following an agreement signed with the presence of President François Mitterrand of France and President Turgut Özal of Turkey during a ceremony at Galatasaray High School, the mother school of the university. Turkey's Ambassador to France, Coşkun Kırca, played an important role in organizing the agreement. Galatasaray University is one of the most important members of the Galatasaray Community as Galatasaray High School and Galatasaray Sports Club.

Galatasaray University is the only Francophone University in Turkey. The establishment has 5 faculties (Economic and Administrative Sciences, Law, Communications, Natural Sciences and Literature, Engineering and Technology), 2 institutes (Social Sciences, Applied Sciences), 200 teachers and 2500 students.

As a participant in the European exchange programs Erasmus and Socrates, Galatasaray University accommodates around 50 European students. Meanwhile, 100 students of Galatasaray University travel each year to France within the framework of these exchange programs.

In essence, Galatasaray University represents a secular tradition of teaching. Courses at Galatasaray University are tri-lingual: in Turkish, French and English. Apart from French which is the primary foreign language, fluency in English as the secondary foreign language is also required. For the Faculty of Engineering, the preparatory period includes only one year of linguistic training.

Galatasaray University is located at Ortaköy within the borough of Beşiktaş, a populated central district on the European side of İstanbul. The building which accommodates Galatasaray University was originally the Feriye Palace, a coastal summer palace on the Bosphorus built in 1871.

Galatasaray University is heir to the centuries-old traditions of Galatasaray High School which was established in 1481 as the Galata Sarayı Enderun-u Hümayunu (Galata Palace Imperial School).