Turkish Higher Education Quality Council (THEQC) Elects Prof. Ümit Kocabıçak as the New President

ANKARA – The election for the Presidency of the Turkish Higher Education Quality Council   (THEQC) has been held. Prof. Ümit Kocabıçak has been elected as the new President after Prof. Muhsin Kar.

The presidential election was held at the Council meeting of THEQC on 22 June 2023.

Turkish Higher Education Quality Council, which evaluates the quality levels of higher education institutions’ education and research activities and administrative services according to national and international quality standards, conducts internal and external quality assurance, accreditation processes and the authorization of independent external evaluation institutions, carries out president elections among the board members selected/assigned by the stakeholder institutions every four years in accordance with the legislation.

About Prof. Ümit Kocabıçak

Born in Sakarya in 1962, Prof. Ümit Kocabıçak completed his primary, secondary and high school education in Sakarya. Prof. Kocabıçak graduated from Istanbul Technical University (ITU) Department of Aeronautical Engineering in 1983 and received his master’s degree from ITU in 1985 and doctorate from ITU Graduate School of Science in 1994. He received the title of Assistant Professor at Sakarya University in 1995, Associate Professor in Computer Aided Design and Manufacturing in 1999, and Professor in Computer Engineering Computer Software Department in 2005.

His administrative duties include being the Vice-Dean of Faculty of Engineering, the Head of Mechanical Engineering Department, the Director of the Continuing Education Center, the Head of the Computer Engineering Department, the Director of Computer and Research Center (BAUM), and the Director of the Distance Education Center (UZEM). Prof. Kocabıçak also served as the Dean of Faculty of Computer and Information Sciences between 2010-2014 and the Vice-Rector between 2014-2018 and 2022-2023. He pioneered the creation of Sakarya University’s Management Information System (SABIS) to facilitate the accreditation processes at the national and international levels in 2010 and acted as its coordinator between 2010-2019 and 2022-2023. He was a part of the working team that contributed to receiving of EFQM European Quality Award by Sakarya University in 2015 and 2018. Prof. Ümit Kocabıçak is married with two children.