ODTU GELECEGIMIZ FUND-TOUCH THE LIFE OF SOMEBODY

Transcending national borders, the METU Our Future Fund (ODTÜ Gelecegimiz Fonu) is entering the 2026–27 academic year by awarding another 1,500 scholarships, thanks to the support received from METU alumni and friends residing in 33 different countries—ranging from Costa Rica to Estonia and Hong Kong to Kazakhstan. Arif Aygündüz, the fund’s founder and a dedicated volunteer, met with current and potential donors in the UK this past May, welcoming new members into our family.London Consul General Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hasan Ulusoy—who holds a doctorate from METU—was also among the attendees at the dinner.Ahu Sendilmen,Aynur Keskin,Berta Tüzüner, Ece Ertem,Ersoy Erkazanc,Göze Iscan,Hüseyin Kertis,Isk Güven Toktams,Sibel Gedikli,Sümeyra Kaya,Seyda Atadan Memis,Tolga Tuncer,Yesim Tohma and Zeynep Sahin who have been providing regular monthly scholarship support , received their thank you plaques.He will visit Spain for the same purpose in October, with trips to the Netherlands and Ireland planned for the coming year.
In July, another 122 of our scholarship recipients graduated and moved on to the next chapter of their lives—some entering the workforce and others pursuing master's degrees. We wish them all great success. The graduation ceremony was magnificent; as is tradition, the graduating scholarship recipients prepared a special banner for Arif Aygündüz.
We have begun accepting scholarship applications for the upcoming academic year. Applications will remain open until October 7, and interviews will commence following an initial screening process conducted by artificial intelligence.