Prof. Dr. Ali Osman Öztürk was born in 1972 in Emet, Kütahya. He completed his primary, secondary, and high school education in his hometown before starting his undergraduate studies in Public Administration at the Faculty of Political Sciences, Istanbul University, in 1991. After graduating with honors, he earned his master’s degree in 1997 from the Faculty of Economics, Department of Labor Economics, with a thesis titled “Social Policies and Industrial Relations of the European Union.”
In 1997, he began his doctoral studies in Labor Economics at Istanbul University. After completing his coursework, he went to the United States in August 1998. At Cornell University, one of the most prestigious universities in the U.S., he received language training and conducted research in the fields of labor economics and human resources. In 2000, he began his Ph.D. in Public Administration at North Carolina State University, where he also served as a full-time teaching assistant. He completed his doctoral degree in 2005. During his assistantship, he contributed to the development and online delivery of research methods courses in political science, earning the “Outstanding Research Assistant Award” for his achievements.
In the same year, he was appointed coordinator of the Leadership in the Public Sector (LPS) undergraduate completion program, which was still in the project phase at the university. He played an active role in all stages of the program’s development, from building its academic foundation to designing its curriculum. By 2008, he became the Director of the LPS program and a faculty member at the School of Public and International Affairs. Despite the financial constraints caused by the global economic crisis that began that year, under Prof. Öztürk’s leadership, the LPS program became financially self-sufficient and even generated revenue without drawing from the faculty’s budget. During his tenure as LPS Director, he taught Leadership in the Public Sector courses and published several articles in reputable academic journals (including SSCI-indexed ones).
Between 2008 and 2010, Prof. Öztürk also contributed to external training programs. As part of the Certified Public Manager (CPM) Program—highly regarded in the U.S. public sector—he delivered Management Practices training and provided project consultancy to senior executives of the State of North Carolina.
Upon returning to Turkey in the summer of 2011, he continued his academic career at Istanbul Commerce University until October 2014. In addition to his position as a faculty member in the Department of Political Science and International Relations, he also held several administrative roles, including Bologna Process Coordinator, Department Chair, and Director of the Center for Leadership and Entrepreneurship Research and Practice. He became an Associate Professor in Public Administration in 2013 and a full Professor in 2018. Later, he served as a faculty member in the Department of Political Science and Public Administration (English) at Istanbul Medipol University. While continuing his academic work in Turkey, he maintained his connection with the LPS program in the U.S., teaching online leadership courses at North Carolina State University between 2011 and 2015.
Prof. Dr. Ali Osman Öztürk has numerous national and international publications on topics such as new public management, entrepreneurship in the public sector, business ethics, and research methodologies in social sciences.
In addition to his academic career, he served as Advisor to the Prime Minister, Chief Advisor to the Prime Minister, and Coordinator of Public Diplomacy at the Prime Ministry between 2014 and 2018. From 2017 to 2021, he was also a member of the Board of Directors of TRT (Turkish Radio and Television Corporation).
Prof. Dr. Öztürk is married and has two children. He is fluent in English.
