Gebze Institute of Technology has been awarded the Lifelong Learning Erasmus Charter in July 2007.

Erasmus Institution ID : TR-KOCAELI01

Erasmus University Charter No: 220801-IC-1-2007-1-TR-ERASMUS-EUC-1

The type of the charter is STANDARD.

Time Coverage of the Charter: 2007-2013

Please click the link below to view the Erasmus University Charter in Adobe PDF format.

Erasmus Policy Statement (EPS)

In order to complete this section, please refer to the instructions given below. Please note that your EPS shall be given wide visibility in your institution and must be published on the web page of your institution. The EPS should set out the overall Erasmus co-operation strategy of your institution in relation with its mission statement, underlying its Erasmus cooperation plan as well as any other activities to be proposed in the framework of the Lifelong Learning (LLP).

a) Please describe briefly your institution's strategy, objectives and priorities for its Erasmus activities (mobility, multilateral projects and thematic networks, etc.) and any other actions in the context of the Lifelong Learning Programme (2007 2013).

a) Gebze Institute of Technology (GIT) has recently released its Strategic Plan that is also approved by The Institute of Higher Education in Turkey. Erasmus activities are considered as an important tool for both achieving the goals put forward in the Strategic Plan and for promoting cultural exchange between Turkey and EU countries. GIT is committed to excellence in teaching and learning within an environment of internationally recognized research.

Towards this end, GIT plans to pursue the following goals in the years 2007-2013:

1. Increasing the quality of programs being offered at GIT,
2. Opening new, interdisciplinary second cycle and doctoral degree programs,
3. Promoting joint research programs with national and international institutions.

In order to achieve these goals, GIT plans to utilize the experiences of the students and staff involved in Erasmus activities. More specifically, GIT will design reports, surveys and interviews to compile data for;

• Comparison of the programs offered at GIT with the similar programs at the host/home institute,
• Second cycle and doctoral degree programs, ongoing research projects at the host/home institute,
• Overall evaluation of the mobility programs.

This data will guide GIT’s efforts in the pursuance of the above goals and also help to improve the quality of mobility programs.

Furthermore, GIT considers the academic staff mobility programs as an excellent opportunity to initiate joint research projects, too. GIT plans to encourage and promote such side activities and is prepared to open its facilities to international researchers.

GIT targets to increase the current number of its outgoing students up to 2% of all the enrolled students and triple the number of incoming students, during the period of 2007-2013.

b) Please also provide information on the following points:

What specific actions are planned to give visibility to Erasmus activities and what type of publicity will be given to the Erasmus University Charter and the EPS?

What kind of arrangements, if any, does the Institution ensure to comply with non-discrimination objectives (e.g. actions related to gender equality, integration of disabled students and staff, enhancement of social and economic cohesion and combating of xenophobia and racism)?

b) The International Relations Office (IRO) is responsible for the publicity and visibility of the Erasmus Program. In addition, Department Erasmus Coordinators help IRO in the distribution of any information. Such information is presented both in printed form and on GIT website. The Erasmus University Charter and the EPS will be displayed on the campus as well as on the web site. IRO also gives regular introductory seminars on Erasmus activities twice a year. Each semester, a student selection procedure is administered for identifying the beneficiaries of the mobility programs. During the selection procedure, announcements are posted on the billboards around the campus and also displayed on the web site. The Erasmus Catalogue including the information on all GIT departments and on the Erasmus Activities is updated every two years.

All forms of discrimination is forbidden by the Turkish Constitution and GIT is committed to combat all forms of prejudice including gender inequality, racism and xenophobia, and to hinder the exclusion of socially disadvantaged groups from education, research and teaching activities.

There is an administrative unit to assist disabled students and staff.

Quality of academic mobility activities:

What kind of specific measures are implemented in the institution to ensure high quality in academic mobility activities? Details should be provided on: recognition and credit systems, the provision of information on curricula, information and counselling of outgoing students, tutoring and integration of incoming students, provision of student services (in particular accommodation), preparatory and refresher language courses, support and acknowledgement of staff mobility.

GIT recognises that part of the success of running Erasmus activities depends upon its internal management. It has therefore allocated;

• A Vice-Rector who is responsible for managing and developing international issues as the Institutional Erasmus Coordinator (IEC).
• Three fulltime staff at IRO working directly under the IEC and coordinating all the mobility programs.
• Departmental Coordinators who are responsible for all the Erasmus Activities involving their department.

GIT has its own internal credit system, declared with their ECTS equivalents. This dual credit system is presented both in the Erasmus Catalogue and on the web site. Furthermore, the Learning Agreements and the Transcript of Records contain both ECTS and GIT credits for the incoming and outgoing students.

GIT will encourage academic staff mobility by acknowledging teaching activity abroad as a plus credit in the promotion system for the academic staff.

A new and updated Erasmus Catalogue is prepared including the information on all GIT departments and Erasmus activities.

The incoming students & staff can be accommodated at GIT’s guest house at a moderate price. GIT also provides transportation to/from the airport for all the incoming students and staff.

An orientation program is organized for both incoming and outgoing students. In addition, a special course titled “Architectural Heritage of Istanbul” is offered to incoming students which gives them the opportunity to have a guided visit to some historical places in Istanbul as well as exposes them to the cultural heritage of Turkey. GIT provides the necessary linguistic preparation through special Turkish language courses for the incoming students.

GIT provides financial support to outgoing students for their travel expenses.

GIT receives periodical feedback about the experiences of incoming and outgoing students and staff through interviews, surveys and reports. This information is used to improve the quality of the mobility programmes.

Quality of student placement activities:

What kind of specific measures are implemented to ensure high quality in student placements? Give details on how the work-programme and the placement agreement are prepared and implemented. Please describe the practical arrangements agreed between the parties. Please specify also the monitoring and evaluation of the placement period as well as its recognition in the curriculum.