My doctoral thesis, titled “The Working Conditions and Organizing Practices of Platform-Based Motorcycle Couriers: The Case of Ankara Motorcycle Couriers”, received an honourable mention from the jury of the 2026 Prof. Dr. Cahit Talas Social Policy Award. The results were announced by Mülkiyeliler Birliği (Mülkiye Alumni Association) on 10 October 2026.
Since 2012, the award has been given to doctoral theses written in the field of social policy. First organised at the Ankara University Faculty of Political Science alongside the Mülkiye Genç Sosyal Politikacılar Kongresi (Mülkiye Young Social Policy Scholars Congress), the award has been held for the last ten years under the umbrella of Mülkiyeliler Birliği with the support of the Tez-Koop-İş Trade Union. Now in its fifteenth year, it is one of the long-standing awards for doctoral theses in social policy in Türkiye and brings visibility to the work of young researchers in the field.
The award is named after Prof. Dr. Cahit Talas (1917-2006), one of the pioneers of the social policy discipline in Türkiye. At the Faculty of Political Science, Cahit Talas founded the Chair of Social Policy, the origin of today’s Department of Labour Economics and Industrial Relations. He served two terms as dean of the faculty (1960-1961 and 1970-1971) and was twice Minister of Labour, in 1960 and in 1961. In 1961, he signed the European Social Charter on behalf of Türkiye.
First and foremost, I would like to thank my esteemed advisor Prof. Dr. Gaye Burcu Yıldız, who has supported me since my undergraduate years and the very beginning of my academic life, who guides me with her knowledge and kindness, and whose student I am fortunate to be. I would also like to thank my thesis committee, the jury and the advisory board of the award, and Mülkiyeliler Birliği and the Tez-Koop-İş Trade Union for sustaining the award over the years. The award ceremony will be held on Friday, 23 October 2026, at 18:00 at the Mülkiye Kültür Merkezi (Mülkiye Culture Centre) in Ankara.
To access the 2026 results of the award, please click on the announcement image below.
