Meet Prof. Dr. Yusuf Tekin, the New Minister of National Education for Turkey
Yusuf Tekin: From Academic to Rector
Yusuf Tekin, a professor and renowned academician, was recently appointed as the rector of Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University. Tekin was born in 1970, in the Tortum district of Erzurum, and completed his primary and secondary education in Rize. He pursued higher education at Ankara University, Faculty of Political Sciences, Department of Public Administration and graduated in 1994.
Tekin started his professional career as a research assistant at Cumhuriyet University, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Department of Public Administration, Department of Political and Social Sciences in 1994. He completed his master’s degree in 1997 and his doctorate in 2002 in the field of politics and social sciences. Following this, he was appointed as a lecturer at Gaziosmanpaşa University, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Department of Public Administration.
Tekin worked as an assistant professor at the said faculty until 2007, after which he became an associate professor in the field of Political and Social Sciences (Political Life and Institutions). He then joined the Faculty of Security Sciences, Presidency of the Police Academy, after serving at Tokat Gaziosmanpaşa University, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences until 2009.
In addition to his teaching career, Tekin also held administrative positions such as department chair, vice dean, university senate member, faculty and institute board member. He was appointed as the Deputy Minister to the Ministry of Youth and Sports in 2011, where he implemented joint projects with universities on the issues of university youth and youth problems.
Tekin started his duty as the Undersecretary of the Ministry of National Education in 2013. During his term as Undersecretariat, he carried out studies on the creation of education policies in coordination with YÖK and universities. He also served as the chairman of the board of trustees of Kyrgyzstan-Turkey Manas University between 2015-2018.
After the removal of the position of Undersecretary with the new government system, Tekin returned to teaching and was appointed as a professor at Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Faculty of Political Sciences, Department of Political Science and Public Administration. He then accepted the position of rector at Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University.
Tekin is married with three children and has a good command of English. With his extensive experience in academia and administrative positions, he is expected to excel in his role as the rector of Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University.
