Beyond Campus Life: The Student Experience at BAU Ortaköy Aparts

The university experience is not limited to classrooms, laboratories and academic areas within the campus. The spaces where students live, socialise, work and carry out their daily routines also constitute an important part of campus life. With this approach, Bahçeşehir University (BAU) is transforming Ortaköy Aparts into a next-generation accommodation and living centre for students. The complex, one of Beşiktaş’s well-known buildings and formerly operating under the name "Republika", will welcome Bahçeşehir University students in the new term under the name BAU Ortaköy Aparts.

Having an area of approximately 18,581 square metres, BAU Ortaköy Aparts features a total of 179 rooms. While 134 of these rooms are allocated for student accommodation, 45 rooms will serve short-term guests in a hotel concept. With a capacity of approximately 500 people, the complex brings together different spaces that will support students' daily needs as well as their social lives. A swimming pool, gym, laundry room, library, cafeteria, hobby areas, café, pocket cinema and lounges are among the parts of this structure. The 3,716-square-metre rooftop terrace, with its landscaping, offers a separate living space where students can come together and enjoy their free time.

The planned structure of BAU Ortaköy Aparts also builds a connection between accommodation and academic life. In the coming years, it is aimed to establish fully-equipped areas within the complex where students can continue their laboratory and research studies. With the implementation of interdisciplinary laboratories and research areas, it is planned to create an environment where students can continue their work even after leaving the campus. This approach presents a model that carries the BAU Campus experience into the different living spaces that the student uses throughout the day.

In university life, the quality of accommodation spaces can affect many aspects, from a student's daily routine to their social relationships. Having opportunities to study, rest, play sports and socialise in the same environment can contribute to students experiencing university life in a more holistic way. In this respect, BAU Ortaköy Aparts is not designed merely as a place to stay; it is positioned as a living space where students can spend time together, continue their work and maintain their connections with the university community.

The Rector of BAU, Prof. Dr Esra Hatipoğlu, also defines the project as a living ecosystem that simultaneously supports the well-being, sense of belonging, social life and academic development of students. It is aimed to further develop this structure with the research and study areas to be added in the upcoming period. Thus, BAU Ortaköy Aparts joins the BAU Campus ecosystem as a new student living centre that brings Bahçeşehir University students' campus experience together with their daily lives in Ortaköy.