Şener Aktürk

Şener Aktürk is a Professor at the Department of International Relations, Koç University. His research focuses on comparative politics of ethnicity, religion, nationalism, and identity, with regional expertise in Germany, Russia, Turkey, Europe, and the Middle East. He holds a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and has been a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University's Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies.

• Education: PhD (UC Berkeley, 2009), Master’s (University of Chicago, 2003)

Research Areas: Geopolitical identities, ethnic regimes, grand strategy, and European Muslim representation. His work includes a comparative analysis of 17 countries and a theory of ethnic regimes (monoethnic/antiethnic/multiethnic).

Scientific Awards: Joseph Rothschild Prize (2013), TÜBA Outstanding Young Scientists (2015), BAGEP Award (2016), TÜBİTAK Incentive Award (2019), and TÜBA Associate Membership (2023).

Recent Publications: Analyzed the Arab Spring as a world-historical event (2023), comparative analysis of circumcision bans in Europe (2018), and institutionalization of ethnocultural diversity (2021). His 2012 book Regimes of Ethnicity and Nationhood in Germany, Russia, and Turkey remains a seminal work.