MiReKoc - Migration Research Center at Koç University

Migration Research Center at Koç University (MiReKoc) aims to advance the state of the art migration research through original and innovative scholarship, academic collaboration, and dialogue between researchers, policy-makers, international organizations and civil society actors. Based in Istanbul, MiReKoc provides a unique, institutionalized hub for migration research with a focus on Turkey and its close environment, with the objective of increasing research capacity and encouraging inter-institutional dialogue on the topic of migration.

Evolved from a grant-giving program into an established and reputable research center, Migration Research Center conducts and participates in a range of research projects in order to motivate national and international networks and to strengthen research capacity in the field of migration. MiReKoc also organizes international conferences, workshops and seminars to discuss various research agendas in the field of migration. Since 2011, MiReKoc organizes the annual International Summer School, a flagship program bringing together migration experts from all over the world.

While MiReKoc’ research initially focused exclusively on the Turkish context, this scope has steadily widened to other countries and regions over the years with a theoretical and empirical contribution to migration literature. The Center intends to advocate multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary research on various aspects of migration. Past projects have considered the causes and consequences of international migration and transnationalism, the integration of migrants into receiving settings, transit migration including the mobility of irregular migrants and refugees, human smuggling and trafficking, migration-security, and the migration-citizenship nexus.