YTU FACULTY OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
DEPARTMENT OF MECHATRONICS ENGINEERING
Thanks to its historic charm, natural beauty, vibrant social life, convenient transportation, and proximity to business centers, Beşiktaş is among Istanbul’s most sought-after neighborhoods. Our department’s courses are held at Yıldız Technical University’s Beşiktaş campus. Thus, Mechatronics Engineering students have the opportunity to experience campus and city life side by side at Beşiktaş Yıldız.
· In which fields does the Department of Mechatronics Engineering offer education? When was it established? What is its annual enrollment capacity? Could you provide information about its physical infrastructure?
The Department of Mechatronics Engineering, part of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at Yıldız Technical University—one of Turkey’s oldest engineering education institutions—was established in 2008. It first admitted students in the 2008–2009 academic year and graduated students for a total of nine years until July 2020. Initially, the department offered 30% English-taught undergraduate programs in both the first and second shifts; however, starting in 2013, the second shift was discontinued and replaced with a 0% English-taught program in the first shift, which graduated its first class in July 2017.
As of the end of the Spring 2021–22 semester, there are a total of 443 students in the Department’s 30% English-taught undergraduate program. In addition to these, there are 395 students in the 0% English undergraduate program, 93 in the master’s program, 32 in the doctoral program, and 5 in the integrated doctoral program, bringing the Department’s total student count to 968.
Why should a student choose the Department of Mechatronics Engineering? (Its contribution to the world, employment rates in the sector, R&D budget allocation, the profession’s future prospects, etc.)
The field of mechatronics is an evolved form of mechanical engineering at some universities and of electrical engineering at others. This evolution combines the fields of mechanical engineering and electrical and electronic engineering, incorporating software and control systems as well. In this regard, mechatronics engineering is a design-oriented engineering discipline.
Automation-heavy machines used in today’s industry minimize human error and labor requirements. In addition, ERP-based or multi-sensor designs capable of high-speed production within the constraints of confined industrial spaces are coming to the forefront. Achieving these capabilities is made possible by the use of electronic hardware and software alongside mechanical components in machines. For this reason, the industry requires a skilled workforce that possesses the knowledge and skills in electronics to define electronic hardware and its functions, as well as in software development to design user interfaces, during the mechanical design process. This necessitates engineers who can understand a system through the lenses of mechanical, electrical, electronic, and software engineering—which is precisely the role of a mechatronics engineer.
· Is the curriculum of the Department of Mechatronics Engineering different from that of other universities? Could you provide information on how the courses are taught? What are the advantages of studying in the Department of Mechatronics Engineering at YTÜ?
The Department’s 30% and 0% English undergraduate programs are completely equivalent in content. When preparing the weekly course schedule, separate sections are opened for the required courses of these two programs. During registration periods, students are only allowed to select courses designated for their own program. However, students with outstanding courses (irregular students) may also take courses from sections opened for the 0% English program (through additional capacity or upon approval of a written request). For elective courses, most sections are open to students from both programs and are taught exclusively in English. As a result, there are no restrictions on students in the 30% English program taking English-taught courses, and the vast majority of students graduate having taken 40–50% of their courses in English.
The most distinctive feature of the undergraduate programs, which consist of a total of 157 credits, is the emphasis on laboratory (21 hours) and practical courses (25 hours), as well as engineering design courses. Beginning with the “Introduction to Mechatronics Engineering” course offered in the first semester, the curriculum—which includes projects requiring prototype manufacturing, programming, and testing—continues throughout the four-year program. The Capstone Project in the final semester is conducted as an applied design project. In this course, students work in teams to build and test a functioning mechatronic system.
A cooperative education (industry-academia collaboration) program is currently in the planning stages and will be offered as an option to interested students. Under this program, students will spend one of their eight semesters working on a project at a partner industrial organization and will be graded based on their performance in that project.
· What qualifications does the Department of Mechatronics Engineering provide to its graduates?
Educational objectives of mechatronics engineering bachelor’s programs
A. The ability to provide optimal solutions or designs for complex engineering problems in professional practice,
B. Who can serve as a productive leader or member in an interdisciplinary team,
C. Possess effective verbal, written, and visual communication skills,
D. Who can keep abreast of current developments and trends, and continuously update and develop their technical and social knowledge and skills,
E. To train engineers who are sensitive to the social and environmental problems of the country and the world, committed to ethical values, and capable of offering solutions and services with an entrepreneurial spirit
engineers.
Among these, the most prominent quality is the ability to provide solutions to challenging problems in industry through effective and economical system, product, and process designs.
· Is the Mechatronics Engineering Department’s curriculum aligned with the expectations and requirements of the industry?
Both in Turkey and around the world, young engineers are expected to develop and provide economical and environmentally friendly solutions to humanity’s complex technological problems.
From their very first semester, department graduates gain experience in designing, manufacturing, assembling, programming, and testing mechatronic systems through numerous courses and their final-year capstone projects. This experience gives graduates great self-confidence and courage to develop solutions to problems they encounter when they enter the workforce or are assigned by their companies. With 30% and 0% English instruction, respectively, graduates of both programs possess a high level of English communication skills. Yıldız Mechatronics graduates are young professionals capable of practicing engineering in any environment, should they choose to do so. This makes them particularly attractive to the domestic industry, and the vast majority of graduates are able to find employment within a relatively short period of time.
· What kinds of jobs do Mechatronics Engineering graduates pursue, and what are their career paths like?
The vast majority of graduates from the YTÜ Department of Mechatronics Engineering work in a wide variety of sectors—such as the domestic automotive industry, durable consumer goods, defense and aerospace, machinery and manufacturing, energy, and robotics and automation—where mechanical, electrical and electronic, control, and software knowledge and skills are applied. Their roles in companies primarily involve project design, product development, R&D, production, maintenance, and automation and programming. Some graduates work for international companies in various parts of the world. While some graduates pursue academic careers, others choose to start their own businesses. In addition, depending on their personal preferences, some graduates enter fields such as sales engineering, marketing, product management, customer service, technical support, and insurance. For graduates entering the service sector, mechatronics engineering provides a solid and comprehensive technological foundation.
Like all engineers, mechatronics engineering graduates gain professional engineering qualifications by working in their field for an average of five years. The goal of mechatronics bachelor’s programs is to fully prepare young graduates for this process.
· Could you provide information about the faculty of the Department of Mechatronics Engineering?
A total of 15 faculty members—including 4 professors, 5 associate professors, and 6 assistant professors—along with 8 research assistants, manage the student body of approximately 900 students. In addition, 12 faculty members are assigned from outside the department or institution to teach various courses on a paid basis.
The department’s faculty members have earned their doctorates from prestigious programs both in Turkey and abroad, and nearly all of them have international work or project experience. The department’s dynamic and innovative structure is constantly evolving with the addition of qualified faculty members each year.
· What laboratory facilities does the Department of Mechatronics Engineering offer?
The department conducts its activities in the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering building at YTÜ’s Yıldız Campus. It features numerous classrooms, a mechanical fabrication workshop, 15 computer-equipped student laboratories, a hydraulic and pneumatic control laboratory, an electrical and electronics laboratory, a motors and drives laboratory, and a systems dynamics and control laboratory. In the summer of 2020, the Industrial Automation Laboratory—containing a total of 14 programming consoles—was added to the teaching laboratories. By the end of summer 2021, the equipment for the thermo-mechatronics training laboratory will also be fully installed.
· Are there any research activities in the Department of Mechatronics Engineering that undergraduate students can participate in?
Undergraduate students are encouraged to participate in the research activities of each faculty member in the department. These research activities are listed as follows:
- Machine Design
- Machine theory and dynamics
- Robotic autonomous systems
- Biomechatronic systems and biomedical devices
- Underwater Vehicles and Control
- Vehicle Dynamics and Control,
- Micro- and nanorobots
- Industrial automation
- Artificial intelligence applications
- Machine Materials
- Manufacturing Technologies
- Conventional and renewable energy
- Computational Fluid Dynamics
- Rheology and polymer processing
The department has four research laboratories:
- Biomechatronics Laboratory
- Simulator and Unmanned Systems Laboratory (SIMULAB)
- Sensors and Actuators (Advanced Electromagnetics) Laboratory
- ASIL (Micro-Nano Robotics Applications) Laboratory
Undergraduate students in the department who wish to gain experience in their areas of interest can contact the relevant faculty member or teaching assistant to work on a project. In addition, the Department provides a mechanical workshop for students working on projects. Furthermore, the University’s Prototype Workshop, located within Yıldız TechnoPark, supports student projects.
· What are the Department of Mechatronics Engineering’s international connections?
The Department’s most significant international connections are through the Erasmus student exchange program. Bilateral agreements have been established with more than 20 universities in Europe. Under the Erasmus program, 15–20 undergraduate students study for 1–2 semesters at partner universities each year, gaining international experience and the opportunity to improve their foreign language skills.
In addition, all faculty members in the Department have connections through their master’s, doctoral, and postdoctoral studies abroad. These connections also provide undergraduate students with certain opportunities abroad, particularly after graduation.
· What internship opportunities are available in the Department of Mechatronics Engineering?
Undergraduate students in the Department have the opportunity to complete internships at well-known companies in Turkey. Thanks to the Department’s strong relationships with major corporations (such as TUSAŞ, Aselsan, Roketsan, Turkcell, Baykar, Arçelik, BSH, and THY Teknik), these companies offer internship opportunities to the Department’s undergraduate students under certain conditions.
Students who wish to do so, or those nearing graduation—especially during the pandemic—have been given the opportunity to complete their Professional Field 1 and 2 internships on projects within the Department. In addition to projects currently being worked on by Department faculty members or those involving unfinished prototype systems, technical tasks are assigned to student interns, who are expected to complete them during their internship period.
· Are there any clubs with a high concentration of Mechatronics Engineering students, and what are their activities?
Yıldız Technical University is renowned for its numerous active student clubs. Some of these have social and cultural focuses, and, as with any department, Mechatronics students who wish to do so participate in them. One club founded by department students is Lagari, which designs unmanned aerial vehicles and participates in national and international competitions. Other clubs in which Mechatronics Engineering undergraduate students play an active role or contribute include MAKTEK (Machine Technologies) and AESK (Alternative Energy Systems).
· What advice would you give to students interested in studying in the Mechatronics Engineering Department?
Mechatronics engineering is the ideal engineering field for people who enjoy designing, manufacturing (or having manufactured), programming, and operating machines, devices, or systems. For students wishing to study in the Department of Mechatronics Engineering,
- Select the Mechatronics Engineering Department as their first choice based on their university entrance exam results
- They should thoroughly prepare themselves in the quantitative sciences (mathematics, physics, chemistry) before beginning their university education
- If they have any doubts about the profession, they should visit the department in person, review the faculty members’ research activities online, and also examine the department’s announcements and achievements posted on social media
- If they are not interested in electromechanical systems, computer hardware and software, or design in general, they are advised not to choose mechatronics engineering programs
is recommended.
Questions About Mechatronics Engineering at Yıldız Technical University:
· YTÜ Mechatronics Through the Eyes of an Alumnus:
YTÜ Mechatronics Engineering Introduction Video
About YTÜ Mechatronics Engineering
Click here to view our undergraduate students’ final projects.
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