Core Curriculum Experience: Okan Arslantaş

Core Curriculum Experience: Okan Arslantaş

Tell us about yourself.
"Hello, my name is Okan. I am a third-year irregular Industrial Engineering student with a Finance minor at Sabancı University. I am from Antalya, and I am a middle child of triplets. I am interested in sailing, playing drums, and reading science-fiction, and mystery books. I am a Learning Assistant at NS101/102 courses for two semesters. I am planning to stay at university and be an academician when I graduate from school."

Did you know about the First Year University Courses that constitute most of our core curriculum before you arrived at SU?
"I know that in the first year, all students in Sabancı University will take the same courses, and then they will select their majors. Whereas, I didn’t specifically know what the First Year University Courses are or what we will learn in them."

Which major did you want to choose? Why?
"I wanted to choose an Engineering major from the beginning of university. Because my uncles are engineers who inspired me to become an engineer and, according to my YKS ranking, I thought that engineering suits me more than other professions. However, I didn’t know which engineering area I would prefer, which is one of the reasons that I chose Sabancı University."

Have you changed your mind about your major after taking the First-Year Courses? If yes, What changed?
"No, but it became clear that I would not choose a CS major. Because in the IF-100 course, I saw that I was not interested in coding, and I didn’t want to spend my entire day sitting in front of a computer trying to solve computational problems. Also, I realized that I liked the topic of modernization of Turkey, which we studied at TLL 101/102 and HIST 191/192 courses, but as I said, it didn’t change my mind about selecting an engineering major. "

Has there been a change in your perspective on the world, science, global trends after taking these courses?
"Yes, SPS courses changed my perspective on human-based revolutions, the challenges of social-political studies, and the roles of science, religion, and political ideologies in modern societies. NS courses showed me how to apply physics, biology, and chemistry to real-life problems like climate change and antibiotic resistance. As a result, the First Year University Courses gave me a perspective based on critical thinking and interdisciplinary approaches."

Okan Arslantaş
July 24, 2021