BULGURCU VAKFI
Bulgurcu Vakfı was founded in Istanbul in 2021 to ensure that women engineers are visible in every area of life and to support them along that path. Led by the dream of Gözde Bulgurcu, a successful engineer who always made her family proud throughout her education, the foundation is committed to helping more women engineers grow in our country. Its target audience is women engineering candidates who, like Gözde, are accomplished in their field and share that same awareness.
Vision:
To contribute to the future of women engineering students by helping them embrace contemporary global values throughout their journey in science, technology and engineering, and by serving as a reliable, transparent and effective foundation for those who wish to make a difference for young people.
Mission:
To work toward educating women engineering candidates to world-class standards and to contribute to raising generations who, as technically and culturally well-prepared individuals, will be of benefit to their country and humanity.
About Us:
Bulgurcu Vakfı was established to strengthen the visibility and presence of women in engineering, to support young women throughout their educational journeys, and to advocate for equal opportunity. Since its founding, the foundation has reached 230 women engineering students over five years with scholarships and development support, helping them continue their education and look to the future with hope.
We provide scholarships to 132 women students enrolled in many engineering disciplines at universities including Boğaziçi, Hacettepe, Middle East Technical and Yıldız Technical, as well as universities across Anatolia. Fields of study include computer, environmental, electronic, industrial, energy systems, genetic, food, civil, geophysical, chemical, mining, mechanical, mathematics, mechatronics, metallurgical and materials, molecular biology and genetics, automotive, aerospace, artificial intelligence and data, and software engineering. Our scholarship recipients receive uninterrupted support as long as they remain above the required academic average and do not repeat a year.
The foundation’s founder, Ayşen Bulgurcu, chose to carry this legacy forward as a sense of responsibility that creates value for society. By turning grief into hope and loss into a social gain, she lit a light so that women engineers can be present with greater strength. This step is not only an example of personal devotion, it is also an inspiring movement on behalf of equal opportunity in education and gender equality.
For our women engineering students with limited financial means, whom we call our “Gözdeler”, we strive to provide comprehensive support so they can continue their education without interruption. In addition to financial assistance, we stand by our scholarship recipients through mentoring programmes, internship opportunities, social and cultural activities, technical visits and educational materials.
The “Gözdelerimiz Scholarship Programme” was launched in 2021. Starting with 30 students in its first year, the programme has continued to grow and reached 110 students by 2025.
Following the earthquakes of 6 February, the “Sesini Duyan Var Scholarship Programme” was launched to support students in the disaster region. Within this programme, we provided scholarships to 10 women engineering students residing in the affected provinces for 12 months throughout the 2023–2024 academic year. In 2025 we continue to support 22 students under this programme.
The FemVizyon Mentoring Programme offered to our scholarship recipients gives them the opportunity to work one-on-one with experts in their field and share experience. This year we are continuing the FemVizyon Mentoring Programme with 55 mentors and 59 mentees.
Through our Geleceğin Bizde Internship Programme, our scholarship recipients gain the chance to apply their theoretical knowledge in practice and gain experience in the business world. During the 2024–2025 academic period, we supported 7 young women in taking the first step in their career journey.
Our social and cultural activities allow our scholarship recipients to develop their social skills, build networks and gain different perspectives. Through technical visits and a variety of educational materials, we help expand their knowledge and keep them up to date with developments in engineering.
Bulgurcu Vakfı, which supports young women throughout their education and career journey, relies on the contributions of regular donors to sustain the services it provides to women engineering students and to reach more of them. The monthly cost for one student is 3,000 TL. With your regular donations you can help ensure the continuity of our work and become a source of hope for the future of young women.
Website: https://www.bavak.org/
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