Could the spirit of economics itself linger in the air? We stand before the Hacettepe Üniversitesi İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi, a place where the theories and realities of finance, trade, and human behavior have been debated for decades. The Hacettepe Üniversitesi İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi, also known as HÜ-İİBF, is one of 16 faculties at Hacettepe University. It’s housed within a large, multi-block building on the Beytepe Campus. This imposing structure holds a rich history, deeply intertwined with the development of economic thought in Turkey.
The story of Hacettepe Üniversitesi İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi begins in 1968. Professor Dr. Osman Okyar laid the foundation by establishing the Department of Economics. In 1974, the Department of Business Administration joined the fold. Together, these departments initially formed the Faculty of Social and Administrative Sciences. The faculty gained its current name in 1982, with the addition of Public Administration and Finance departments in 1983. Later, in 1994, International Relations broadened the faculty’s scope. By 2006, departments like Social Work, Health Administration, and Family and Consumer Sciences had also found a home within the Hacettepe Üniversitesi İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi. This brought the faculty to its current form, a diverse hub of social and economic disciplines.
The Hacettepe Üniversitesi İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi is known for its broad array of programs. The faculty offers instruction in Turkish and English. The Department of Economics even allows students to choose their preferred language of instruction. The bustling halls of HÜ-İİBF are a testament to its size. At one point, it housed nearly 7,200 students across undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs. This made it the most populous faculty at Hacettepe University, representing a significant portion of the student body. From its humble beginnings as a single economics department, the Hacettepe Üniversitesi İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi has become a dynamic institution. It shapes the future of economics and administration in Turkey, one graduate at a time.