Academic portfolio
İlyas Kayra Ak
MA student in International Relations at TOBB ETÜ
I am an MA student in International Relations at TOBB ETÜ and a Political Science and Public Administration graduate of METU. My interests centre on political economy, modernization, nationalism, and the historical construction of political orders.
Working On
I am exploring a possible research direction on how democracy and human rights can be defended while taking seriously the coercive histories of modernity and postcolonial critiques of universalism. An initial reflection outlines the questions I hope to develop further.
Read the initial reflection →A concise selection
Selected Work
Basque Country and Local Governance
- Public Administration
- Political Economy
- Nationalism
An examination of the Basque Country’s local governance, fiscal autonomy, and regional development. Drawing on Marxist, pluralist, and Weberian-institutionalist perspectives, the paper explores how self-government shapes economic inequalities, regional identity, and relations with the Spanish state.
Defining Oneself Anew: A Story of Urbanization
- Urban Studies
- Modernization
A course paper that uses a science-fiction narrative to explore urbanization, family history, and the making of identity. Moving between an imagined future and intergenerational experiences of social change, it considers how work, place, and memory shape a sense of self.
Reflection to Public Financial Management and Control Law No. 5018
- Public Administration
- Political Economy
An analysis of Turkey’s public financial management reform through Law No. 5018, focusing on internal control, auditing, and accountability. Drawing on institutional reports and interviews, the study examines the gap between the reform’s formal framework and the practical capacity and independence of oversight institutions.
From the catalogue
Recent Additions
- Universal Values, Coercive Modernity, and the Postcolonial Dilemma: Rethinking Democracy and Human Rights between Modernism and Its CriticsReflection · EN
- The Politics of Decline: History, Gender, and Moral Decay in Sultan Hamid DüşerkenCourse Paper · EN
- Reflection to Public Financial Management and Control Law No. 5018Report · EN
- Basque Country and Local GovernanceCourse Paper · EN
Background
About
I am a Political Science and Public Administration graduate from Middle East Technical University (METU), currently pursuing an MA in International Relations at TOBB ETÜ. My interests include political economy, the history and politics of modernization, nationalism, and constructivist approaches to international relations.
More about this work →