Alyn Cicek
An international relations student from Istanbul, Turkey, Aylin Cicek brings her foreign perspective to USC and hopes to take the advantages of a U.S. education back home.
Turkey, she explains, is going through a period of economic and political problems. Cicek believes it is up to her generation to change the course of the country's future. "I want to get a good education to broaden my view," she says, "and go back home and do something."
Under Professor Patrick James' guidance, Cicek is part of a research team called the "Near-Crisis Project." The group studies how worldwide crises break out and, more importantly, are avoided. Like an undergraduate think-tank, Cicek and her team regularly meet to toss around ideas and delve into the subject.
"I love that people at USC encourage us to think for ourselves and not just memorize things," she says.
Cicek is also enthusiastically pursuing a leadership minor. She gets a chance to use these leadership skills as the vice president of the Turkish Student Association, a group that, she says, was floundering. "We weren't very active until my peers came together," says Cicek. "We talk about the issues that our country is going through and try to get people to know Turkey."
After graduating, the sophomore hopes to land a government job in Los Angeles and has a graduate degree in her sights.
Caroline Cha, a fellow international relations student, describes Cicek as not only an ambitious student, but also a thoughtful friend. "I have never seen Aylin falter in her convictions to make the world a better place for all," she says.