Considerations for Translational Research Jobs

Yasemin Gürsoy-Özdemir leads the neuroscience graduate program at Koç University in Istanbul, Turkey. This program seeks to increase innovative translational research. In this interview, she offers insight into key skills for a translational research career and how studying abroad and working with global collaborators can enrich your training.

What was your training path?

I started my education at Hacettepe University, Faculty of Medicine. After I got my degree, I entered the residency program in neurology. At that time, I realized doing the clinical work was not enough, as I wanted to understand the mechanisms underlying the neurological diseases.

There was a neuroscience PhD program at Hacettepe University, so I enrolled. After finishing my PhD education, I went to Massachusetts General Hospital to do my postdoctoral studies. I stayed for two and a half years, after which I returned to Turkey and worked at my previous university.

Four years ago, I moved to Koç University, in Istanbul. Currently I’m the director of the neuroscience PhD program, as well as the director of the Graduate School of Health Sciences.

Speaker

Yasemin Gürsoy-Özdemir, MD, PhD

Yasemin Gürsoy-Özdemir is the coordinator of the neuroscience PhD program and director of the Graduate School of Health Sciences at Koç University in Istanbul, Turkey. She earned her degrees in neurology and neuroscience at Hacettepe University, Faculty of Medicine and completed postdoctoral research at Harvard Medical School. Prior to joining the faculty of Koç University School of Medicine in 2014, she taught at Hacettepe University for 10 years. She studies the role of pericytes in neurological diseases and cerebral blood flow, the role of different matrix environments in neuron culture formation, targeted drug delivery systems to the brain, and experimental modeling of neurological diseases.