Social Services Program Successfully Completes Seminar Series

The weekly seminar series, organized annually by Üsküdar Üniversitesi Vocational School of Health Services (VSHS) Social Services Program and held this year under the title “Social Service Institutions,” was successfully continued throughout the 2025 Spring Semester. In the program coordinated by Social Services Program Head Assist. Prof. Melek Çaylak, expert names working in various institutions within the social service field shared their professional experiences with students. 

The seminar series, which addressed a different topic and institution each week, allowed students to gain direct knowledge about institutional structures, service models, and field applications before graduation. 

In the weekly seminar series, social services were discussed under many different topics. 

In this context; 

-    Prof. Dr. İsmail Barış, Head of the Social Work Department, Üsküdar Üniversitesi Faculty of Health Sciences, discussed “General Social Service Institutions and Management”,

-    Assoc. Prof. Dr. Melike Boztilki, faculty member at Health Sciences University, discussed “The Academic Face of Social Work and Its Interdisciplinary Connection”,

-    Sedef Şuvman, Director of Üsküdar Social Service Center, Ministry of Family and Social Services, discussed “Ministry of Family and Social Services Social Service Centers: The Üsküdar Example”, 

-    Müjde Koçak, Director of Anadolu Children's Homes Coordination Center (ÇEKOM), Ministry of Family and Social Services, discussed “Service Models for Child Services: Children's Homes Coordination Centers”, 

-    Rabia Güngör, Deputy Provincial Director of Istanbul, Ministry of Family and Social Services, and Mehtap Akbulut Gökgöz, Director of Violence Prevention and Monitoring Center (ŞÖNİM), Ministry of Family and Social Services, discussed “Institutions Providing Services for Women: Women's Shelters and ŞÖNİM's”,

-    Serkan Akdem, Branch Manager of Elderly Services, Ministry of Family and Social Services, and Asuman Çebi, Director of Maltepe Nursing Home, Ministry of Family and Social Services, discussed “Services and Institutions for the Elderly”, 

-    Halis Kuralay, Deputy Provincial Director of Istanbul, Ministry of Family and Social Services, and Serdar Arslan, Branch Manager of Disability Services, Ministry of Family and Social Services, discussed “Services and Institutions for Persons with Disabilities”, 

-    Burcu Kösem, Head of Turkish Red Crescent (Kızılay) Istanbul Provincial Branch, and Dr. Instructor Gamze Kağan, Head of Occupational Health and Safety Program at Üsküdar Üniversitesi VSHS, discussed “Social Service Activities in Non-Governmental Organizations: The Kızılay Example”,

-    Ahmet Ozan Berktaş, Deputy Provincial Director of Istanbul, Ministry of Family and Social Services, discussed “Personnel and In-Service Training Services in Social Service Institutions”,

-    Psychologist Betül Güngör from Üsküdar Social Service Center, Ministry of Family and Social Services, discussed “Introduction of Foster Care and Adoption Service Models”. These topics were extensively discussed by experts. 

Students' Professional Development Supported

The seminar series, coordinated by Social Services Program Head Assist. Prof. Melek Çaylak, aimed to support students' professional development, enable them to recognize different service areas, and contribute to their career planning.  

Field Experts Shared Their Experiences

Within the scope of the program, students heard about the application areas of social service directly from those working in the field.  Comprehensive content regarding service models, institutional structures, and professional responsibilities was shared with students within the scope of the seminar series.