Bilkent University’s “Kızlara Burs” program provides undergraduate scholarships for female students who come from priority regions for development and who have received high scores on the university entrance examination. Funding for the program comes from donors wishing to support outstanding students who would otherwise lack the financial means to pursue their studies at Bilkent. (More information on the “Kızlara Burs” program may be found at http://adaybilgi.bilkent.edu.tr/index. php/kizlara-burs-programi/.)
Below, two of this year’s scholarship recipients describe their feelings about the program:
Damla Akçaoğlu (EE)
I have been experiencing Bilkent’s cold but colorful life for a few months now. I’m new here, so I can only tell you how I came to be at Bilkent. You know that the year of university preparation is a year in which everybody has dreams, but people focus the most on mathematics. I started with those little dreams and began looking for a university where my dreams could grow with me. In this regard Bilkent was always a university I had in mind, but I couldn’t enter the department I wanted. Nevertheless, I still didn’t give up on my hopes of Bilkent; I continued to explore the possibilities and to dream. It’s a good thing I didn’t give up too quickly; I noticed the “Kızlara Burs” program when I visited the university website. Here was the opportunity I was looking for. I applied to the program the same day. I can’t explain how I felt when I learned that I had gotten the scholarship. Bilkent’s program has allowed me to dream (with more hope) that women can lead the future in the engineering field, too. Think together, achieve together.
Ayşe Eda Ersöz (LAW)
From the day I entered Kırıkkale Fen Lisesi, my dream was to receive my university education in the Bilkent University Faculty of Law. After ranking 2,500th in the national entrance exam, I thought that I wouldn’t be able to benefit from Bilkent’s excellent education and campus life. But Bilkent had a surprise in store, proving that it was the right university for me as I didn’t have to give up on my dreams. This scholarship for highly ranked female students is another proof of Bilkent’s excellence.