Prof. Dr. Türker Ergüzel, Head of the Software Engineering Department, drawing attention to the challenges faced by artificial intelligence algorithms when evaluating university candidates, said, “Artificial intelligence makes evaluations and can provide some information to candidates based on verbal information written on the web pages of relevant departments. Artificial intelligence algorithms are far from considering candidates' skills and making qualitative evaluations between departments.”
Prof. Dr. Türker Ergüzel: “They should definitely come to the campuses, get information from the department faculty members, and make their choices by considering their own skills, the skills required by the departments, and future trends.”
Üsküdar University Rector's Advisor and Head of the Software Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences (MDBF), Prof. Dr. Türker Tekin Ergüzel, evaluated whether university preferences should be made with artificial intelligence.
Artificial intelligence algorithms can provide some information to candidates based on verbal data
Prof. Dr. Türker Tekin Ergüzel, drawing attention to the difficulties faced by artificial intelligence algorithms when evaluating university candidates, said, “Artificial intelligence makes evaluations and can provide some information to candidates based on verbal information written on the web pages of relevant departments. While artificial intelligence algorithms can provide quantitative information, they are still far from considering candidates' skills and making qualitative evaluations between departments. If you want to get an evaluation about a department, it provides verbal information and makes recommendations about it. However, algorithms are still insufficient for comparative evaluations based on qualitative data such as comparisons of departments, the difference between two departments, or the comparison of the same department in two different universities.”
Why is it important to visit campuses?
Prof. Dr. Ergüzel emphasized the importance for candidates to visit campuses and get information from the relevant faculty members to make the most accurate decision in their university preferences, stating, "They should get information, and make their choices by considering their own skills, the skills required by the departments, and future trends. They can only obtain these values from individuals who are involved in the field, know the publications of the faculty members, and understand related works. Algorithms can only make superficial comparisons based on quantitative data."
Prof. Dr. Ergüzel stated that while artificial intelligence algorithms can make comparisons based on quantitative data, algorithms in their current state are far from being able to make an integrated evaluation regarding future preference and employment trends, as well as the candidate's academic and professional expectations. Prof. Dr. Ergüzel, stating that the primary expectation from artificial intelligence algorithms is predictive ability, added that the predictive ability of these algorithms to guide candidates is not yet sufficient.
Artificial intelligence engineering is very popular
Prof. Dr. Ergüzel stated that artificial intelligence engineering departments are popular and candidates tend to prefer these departments, saying, "Many universities have opened departments related to artificial intelligence engineering or data science. Today's developments can actually be said to be the result of the rapid progress of developments in the software world faster than physical systems. At the beginning of this process, significant contributions were made to the engineering field with Electrical and Electronics Engineering, while Computer Engineering was established to control these physical systems, Software Engineering was opened to train researchers who want to specialize in application development and contribute to the workforce in this field, and finally, Artificial Intelligence Engineering departments were opened to develop intelligent systems that deepen in software and learn by themselves. The "National Artificial Intelligence Strategy 2021-2025," prepared in cooperation with the Presidency's Digital Transformation Office and the Ministry of Industry and Technology, and with the active participation of all relevant stakeholders, specifically underlines the need for trained engineers in the field of Artificial Intelligence in our country.
The number of high-tech producing companies is expected to increase
Prof. Dr. Ergüzel noted that the number of high-tech producing companies in our country is expected to increase further in the short and medium term, stating, "Particularly in the defense industry, highly valuable AI-supported products are being developed. As their numbers increase and they continue to generate economic value, software, computer, or artificial intelligence engineers graduating in this field will also be employed."
It is important for them to develop themselves by taking AI-focused courses
Prof. Dr. Türker Tekin Ergüzel also expressed his recommendations regarding candidates' preferences, stating:
“My assessment regarding our candidates' choices is that they should currently prefer established and well-rooted engineering fields such as software engineering and computer engineering. Over time, they should gravitate towards sub-branches they are interested in, such as artificial intelligence, where they can develop algorithms, self-learning systems, machine learning, and deep learning. It is also important for candidates studying software or computer engineering to develop themselves by taking artificial intelligence-focused courses. Because we foresee that the sector will need this in the short term.”
They should get superficial information from artificial intelligence interfaces
Prof. Dr. Türker Tekin Ergüzel, pointing out the issues to consider when making choices with artificial intelligence, said, "They can get superficial information through interfaces like ChatGPT or Gemini, but the essential aspect should be a comparative evaluation and considering the candidate's skills based on qualitative attributes. Artificial intelligence interfaces are not yet sufficient for them to make this qualitative comparison effectively. They must come to the campuses, get information from the relevant faculty members about future career trends, employment potentials, and the skills required by the field, and see the campuses."
Information should be obtained not only from artificial intelligence but also from experts!
Noting that students ask general questions to artificial intelligence, Prof. Dr. Türker Tekin Ergüzel stated, “When you ask, '(Should I choose a specific department? My ranking is like this),' you get general answers. What are your talents and skills? It generates answers completely independent of these. What are the student's tendencies? It gives answers independent of factors such as numerical ability, analytical thinking skills. But when you do this interactively, you can get healthy guidance and counseling. Therefore, get superficial information from artificial intelligence interfaces, but you must get in-depth information and qualitative comparisons from counselors or faculty members on campuses. Because the department they will study for four years will determine their future careers. Relying solely on artificial intelligence algorithms for this critical decision would be a very ambitious approach. Therefore, it is beneficial to make this critical decision not only from artificial intelligence algorithms but also by consulting with experts.”