GONCA SOYSAL

GONCA SOYSAL

BTF Vice President

Born and raised in Türkiye, Dr. Gonca Soysal earned her B.Sc. degree in Industrial Engineering from Middle East Technical University (METU) in Ankara in 1995, followed by an M.Eng. degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering from the University of Florida in Gainesville in 1997. A strong advocate for equal access to high-quality education, Gonca attended some of the best public schools in Türkiye at the time, including Ankara Atatürk Anadolu Lisesi and Ankara Fen Lisesi.

 

Before returning to academia, Gonca worked in Istanbul for five years, first as a Systems Manager for Procter & Gamble, then moving on to become a Management Consultant and Service Line Manager for Ernst & Young. In 2002, she returned to the US to further her education, earning M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in Marketing Analytics from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Following her graduation, Gonca worked as an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of Texas at Dallas and the University of Arkansas. In addition to teaching various marketing courses at the undergraduate, graduate, and executive education levels to thousands of students, Gonca is an accomplished empirical researcher, with her work published in top academic journals and cited by numerous media outlets. Her research focuses on retailing, pricing, and e-commerce.

 

Gonca’s journey with BTF began in 2014 with a desire to give back to her homeland from afar and contribute to causes she deeply cares about. A quick Google search led her to BTF, where she immediately connected with the organization’s values and culture, and was inspired by the many selfless volunteers working hard to support Türkiye. Since then, she has served as the founder and leader of the BTF Dallas-Fort Worth Giving Circle, founder and director of the BTF METU (ODTU) Scholarships, and as a BTF Board Member.

 

In July 2023, Gonca was elected Vice President of BTF by the Board of Directors. She currently lives in Amsterdam, Netherlands with her husband Metehan and their two daughters.

 

E-Mail: gonca@bridgetoturkiye.org