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Sakarya University is a state university based in Serdivan, an urban district close to Adapazar, which is located about 100 miles from Istanbul.

The university was large even by Turkish standards before being divided into two in 2018.

Even after the spin-off, which created Sakarya University of Applied Science, it remains a substantial institution with just under 53,000 students spread across 13 faculties and six research institutes, and a male-female gender ratio of 52:48.

The year 2020 marked the institutions' 50th anniversary of its foundation. It was first called the Sakarya State Engineering and Architecture Academy and was initially affiliated to Istanbul Technical University. It then attained independence and full university status in 1992.

Post-division the institution adopted a fresh mission statement: "To raise entrepreneurial individuals who have lifelong learning skills and are equipped with the capability of enriching humanity and to produce knowledge, technology and social service in a universal quality".

Internationalisation is a priority, with a newly-created International Relations Coordinating Office which aims to increase the number of international students. Ten graduate programmes that are taught entirely in English were introduced in 2019, with an undergraduate English Business course to come in 2020.

One notable student enterprise was the creation of the Evrim 4 electric car, which could travel substantial distances, and at 35 mph, on a small charge.

Notable among the research centres is the Middle East Institute, created following the Arab Spring. Former management lecturer Abdullah Gul was president of Turkey from 2007 to 2014.