3 MS & PhD Alumni

Sena Artarslan (MSc. IE) works as an analytical consultant under the Supply Chain Directorate at KoçDigital. She provides consultancy services by blending her knowledge in both machine learning and optimization to develop algorithms used in clients' supply chains and integrating them into their processes effectively.

With the contribution of the elective courses she took as a senior at Özyeğin University, she developed a simulation model to test the efficiency of being an agile team at RDC Partner as an internship. In her senior year, she contributed to the predictive quality project that predicts defects in glass production with machine learning. After completing her undergraduate studies, she pursued a master's degree in Industrial Engineering at Özyeğin University, where she also served as a research and teaching assistant. During her graduate studies, she worked as a teaching assistant in the Mathematical Modeling and Exact Methods course. Meanwhile, she conducted research on a version of the Inventory Routing Problem under the scope of TÜBİTAK 1001 and successfully completed her thesis on the same topic. She had the opportunity to present her thesis project at the POMS Conference in France.

After completing her master's degree as of September 2023, Sena continues her career journey in business life and provides consultancy to Turkey's leading companies at KoçDigital by developing solutions that optimize supply chain problems.

Farzad completed his doctoral studies in Industrial Engineering at Özyeğin University, where he achieved academic success and actively participated in various research projects. His research thesis focused on optimization under uncertainty and was accompanied by simultaneous involvement in multiple research endeavors. He successfully defended his thesis in February 2023 and was distinguished as the outstanding researcher at the engineering faculty of Özyeğin University during the final year of his Ph.D. studies. He also collaborated with scholars from Binghamton University to solve the electric bus scheduling challenge of the university's shuttle network. Additionally, Farzad served as a teaching assistant for various courses, particularly for heuristic algorithms for optimization courses.

Currently, Farzad continues his post-doctoral studies at HEC Montréal, where he concentrates on tackling inventory routing and distribution problems for Hydro Quebec, Canada's largest power utility and a significant global hydropower provider. Simultaneously, he remains committed to advancing projects in transportation optimization and optimization under uncertainty, particularly emphasizing public transportation. Farzad actively engages as a member of esteemed research institutes in the logistics field, including Cirrelt and GERAD.

Ecem (IE) earned her undergraduate degree in Industrial Engineering with a minor in Computer Science at Özyeğin University. Throughout her undergraduate studies, she served as a teaching assistant in various courses, enhancing her academic knowledge, and took on roles in numerous events. She also gained business experience through internships at companies such as Marks&Spencer, Credit Europe Bank Romania, Bosch, and Kariyer.net. She participated in innovative idea development workshops held in Turkey and the Netherlands.

Ecem also completed her master's degree at Özyeğin University, where she made significant contributions to international and interdisciplinary research projects. She had the opportunity to present her research at international conferences and took part in organizing committees. She continued her role as a teaching assistant in various courses. Due to her outstanding performance, she was awarded the Best Teaching Assistant in 2022 and the Outstanding Research Assistant in 2023. Additionally, her undergraduate and graduate studies were supported by scholarships from the Istanbul Chamber of Industry Foundation and TÜBİTAK BIDEB.

Ecem is currently pursuing her PhD in Technology and Operations Management at INSEAD, one of the world's top business schools. She is focusing on areas such as humanitarian logistics, sustainable operations, and healthcare systems, expanding her interests and continuing her research in these fields.