Afyon Kocatepe Üniversitesi

Afyon Kocatepe University (AKU) was officially established on July 3, 1992, along with 21 other new universities in Türkiye. Educational activities began on November 10, 1992. However, its academic roots date back to 1974 with the establishment of the Afyonkarahisar Finance and Accounting High School, initially affiliated with the Eskisehir Academy of Economic and Commercial Sciences. In 1987, this institution became the Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences under Anadolu University, and later was integrated into AKU upon its foundation.

Several vocational schools previously affiliated with Ege and Anadolu Universities—such as Uşak Vocational School, Afyonkarahisar Vocational School, and Bolvadin Vocational School—were also transferred to AKU during its establishment. Additionally, new faculties and institutes including the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Faculty of Technical Education, and the Institutes of Social and Natural Sciences were founded in Afyonkarahisar.

Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, the university expanded rapidly with the opening of vocational schools in various districts (e.g., Dinar, Emirdağ, Sandıklı, Şuhut, Çay, İscehisar, Sultandağı, and Sinanpaşa) and the establishment of new faculties including Veterinary Medicine (1996), Medicine (1998), Fine Arts (2001), Education (2001), Engineering (2001), and Law (2010).

Further structural development continued with the foundation of specialized faculties such as Dentistry (2011), Pharmacy (2012), Islamic Sciences (2012), and Aviation and Space Sciences (2014). Some academic units, including the Faculties of Medicine, Dentistry, and Pharmacy, as well as several health-related vocational schools, were later transferred to the newly established Afyonkarahisar University of Health Sciences in 2018.

The School of Physical Education and Sports was restructured into the Faculty of Sports Sciences in 2019. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Distance Education Application and Research Center was established in 2020 to support remote learning. In 2021, the Bolvadin School of Applied Sciences was upgraded to the Faculty of Applied Sciences, becoming the university’s 13th faculty.

As of today, Afyon Kocatepe University comprises 13 faculties, 3 graduate institutes, 3 schools, 1 state conservatory, and 14 vocational schools.

AKU continues to serve as a regional center for higher education, research, and innovation with a strong commitment to academic excellence and community engagement.