• Career Advantage: An international program certificate that will help you stand out in the business world by gaining expertise in the field of global sustainability.
• Global Network: The opportunity to work on joint projects with students from different countries and cultures.
• Industry Experience: The chance to solve real-world problems under the guidance of international companies, non-governmental organizations, and expert mentors.

Students who are interested in sustainability, the circular economy, the climate crisis, and global issues, and who have a good command of English sufficient to carry out projects at the international level, are eligible to apply to the program. When evaluating program applications, candidates will be expected to provide the following documents and meet the following criteria:

• Must be undergraduate (first year must be completed), master or PhD student

• A Word or PDF file containing your first name, last name, email address (with an “itu” extension), email address (with a “gmail” extension), class year, department/faculty, and field of study
• Current Transcript
• English Proficiency Certificate (if available): Since all projects will be conducted in English, a current English proficiency test certificate accepted by ITU (ITU Proficiency, TOEFL, YÖKDİL, YDS, etc.).
• Social and Social Responsibility Activities: If applicable, active roles, events, and sustainability-focused volunteer work carried out in ITU student clubs (must be specified in the application).
• Academic Activities: If applicable, projects, publications, and other academic activities and outputs.

• Academic Support Letter: A support letter from an ITU faculty member (professors, instructors, or research assistants holding a Ph.D.) who has agreed to participate as a mentor in the Future17 program will provide applicants with priority and a significant advantage during the evaluation process.

·       To provide guidance to multinational and interdisciplinary student teams (through weekly online meetings lasting approximately 1–2 hours),

·       To contribute to the development of projects from methodological and sustainability perspectives,

·       To facilitate the exchange of cultural and academic knowledge as part of an international network.

All of our faculty members, as well as our lecturers and research assistants who hold a Ph.D. and have a good command of English, and who are interested in sustainability, the circular economy, the climate crisis, global issues, and interdisciplinary fields of study, may apply to the program as mentors.

·       International Network: The opportunity to build a direct network with academic staff from QS-ranked and leading universities worldwide, as well as global industry representatives.

·       Academic Visibility: Official mentoring experience and certification in an international educational innovation project.

·       Making an Impact: The chance to directly guide the concrete solutions young minds are developing to address global sustainability crises.

·       A Word or PDF file containing your first name, last name, email address (with an “itu” extension), email address (with a “gmail” extension), department/faculty, and field of study

Students will be matched with projects that align with their interests, skills and time zones by QS. Each team will consist of five to six students from different institutions, supported by one or two mentors. Rather than students selecting their mentors individually, project and team matchings will be conducted by QS.

Projects will develop proposed solutions addressing the needs and challenges of industries in the field of sustainability. The project topic will be determined through a joint assessment by the student team, the mentor, and the relevant industry stakeholder. Accordingly, projects are expected to produce concrete and actionable outcomes addressing sustainable development and current challenges faced by the industry.

The program is planned to be conducted entirely online. There are no in-person events planned as part of the program.

Students are expected to dedicate a total of approximately 150 hours to the program and project work throughout the semester.

Mentors are expected to dedicate approximately 20 hours per semester.

Mentors are university professors or postdoctoral researchers who can provide academic and professional guidance to a project group composed of students from various universities who are interested in the Sustainable Development Goals.

The primary responsibility of mentors is to guide student teams throughout the project process, direct their project work, and support students in achieving the defined project goals.

ITU faculty members may apply to the program as mentors. The mentoring role requires dedicating approximately 20 hours per semester.

Mentors are there to advise and not to deliver material. The mentor is therefore someone to inspire, encourage, nudge, challenge and affirm student group work; they are not there to teach or answer factual questions for students.

For other questions regarding mentoring: https://www.exeter.ac.uk/study/future17/staff/

No. The program does not provide scholarships, stipends, or any other form of financial support to participants.

The program is a hands-on initiative focused on enabling students to develop projects addressing real-world sustainability challenges by collaborating with teammates from different universities, academic mentors, and industry partners.

You can find detailed information about the program’s scope, the project process, participants’ responsibilities, and expected outcomes on the program’s official website: https://www.qs.com/solutions/future17

You can view sample projects here: https://sdg.adv-pub.moveon4.com/projects/

You can access the websites of the partner universities here:

Exeter: https://www.exeter.ac.uk/study/future17/

Arizona State University: https://collegeofglobalfutures.asu.edu/future17/

Auckland: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/about-us/about-the-university/the-university/sustainability-and-environment/studying-sustainability/future17.html

Tec de Monterrey: https://tec.mx/en/future17

The program is scheduled to take place from September 28 to December 18, 2026.

The program will last a total of 12 weeks. Students are expected to dedicate an average of 150 hours throughout the semester to complete their project work.

The process of selecting mentors for the program is still ongoing. Therefore, there is no finalized list of mentors available at this stage.

Students may invite an academic they deem suitable to serve as a mentor for the program. Additionally, it is not mandatory for the letter of recommendation to be obtained from an academic who will serve as a mentor in the program; letters of recommendation from other academics at ITU may also be used.