Yakup is a fully-funded PhD candidate in the department of International Relations and Political Science at Koç Üniversitesi in Turkey. He is also a research and teaching assistant. Previously, Yakup graduated at the top of his class from the department of Economics at Istanbul Universitesi and received a Turkish scholarship! Congrats!
During his time at Istanbul University, he led an Uyghur student organization, putting together cultural activities and events. Yakup and his team have now established the Uyghur Student Union which aims to bring Uyghur students around the world together by carrying out academic and cultural events. They will be hosting their first International Uyghur Student Symposium in January 25-26, 2020 (check their page for a call for papers)! Good luck!
In the future he would like to create a platform in which students from all backgrounds can be involved.
He is an active participant in work relating to the development of school children in Istanbul. He was a volunteer tutor in Istanbul and regularly visits Uyghur children in Selimpaşa with his fellow peers. Yakup is fluent in Arabic, English, Turkish, and Mandarin, and hopes to become an academic in the international policy economics following his PhD.
Best of luck to you in your studies!