RESEARCH AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
From Assignment to Company Establishment: A Technopark Guide for Academics
Last updated: 12 October 2026
Important Announcement
Electronic Document Management System (EBYS)
All documents must be submitted through the Electronic Document Management System (EBYS). Physical documents will not be accepted.
Assignments at Technology Development Zones and R&D / Design Centers
Under Article 7 of Law No. 4691 on Technology Development Zones and paragraph 11 of Article 3 of Law No. 5746 on Supporting Research, Development and Design Activities, our university's faculty members may be assigned as consultants, researchers, or project leaders at companies located in Technology Development Zones and at R&D / Design Centers.
To view the assignment process for Technology Development Zones and R&D / Design Centers, please click here Turkish.
Related Documents
Law No. 4691 Assignments under Law No. 4691 on Technology Development Zones
Law No. 5746 Assignments under Law No. 5746 on Supporting Research, Development and Design Activities
Points to Note
- All documents must first be submitted through the Electronic Document Management System (EBYS); after they are initialed by the Technopark Assignment Officer, the original documents must be delivered to the Research Coordinatorship for filing.
- The phrase "within the scope of Law No. 4691 and its implementing regulation," which appears in the EBYS cover letter template, should only be used if the company where the assignment will take place is located within a Technology Development Zone. If the company is not located in any Technology Development Zone and is instead an R&D or Design Center, the phrase used in the body of the cover letter must be "within the scope of the Implementation and Supervision Regulation on Supporting Research, Development and Design Activities under Law No. 5746."
- Within the documents to be submitted, all sections requiring the signatures of the Company and the Academic must be completed.
- Technopark assignments may last a minimum of 3 months and a maximum of 12 months. If the project is supported by an institution such as TÜBİTAK, KOSGEB, the Ministry of Industry, or TTGV, the assignment may exceed 12 months. In that case, Item 5 of the Research Project Preliminary Assessment Form must be marked "Yes."
- For assignments at Technopark companies outside METU, 25% of the amount paid to consultants must be deposited into the account of the METU Directorate of Strategy Development.
- Since research assistants cannot be assigned individually, they must be included as part of a faculty member's project, and an Advisor's Opinion is also required. (The advisor's opinion may be stated on the academic request petition.)
- For the assignment of a single academic, the TC-2 form is not required; the TC-1 form is sufficient. If more than one academic is involved in the same project, the TC-2 form to be signed among themselves must also be prepared.
- The company and the academic may use a PDF e-signature instead of a wet signature, if available.
- The date of the cover letter initiated in EBYS must be at least 2 weeks earlier than the project’s start date. Documents with non-compliant dates will not be accepted under any circumstances.
- In the Academic Assignment Contract, the contract signing date must be earlier than the project start date.
Financial Information
Important Financial Rule
If the company to be worked with is located in another Technology Development Zone or at an R&D / Design Center, 25% of the total net fee to be received by the faculty member must be deposited to the METU Directorate of Strategy Development.
Ziraat Bank, METU Branch
METU Directorate of Strategy Development
TR49 0001 0015 3708 9738 8950 02
("ÜYK Kararı gereği %25 ODTÜ Payı" should be written in the description section.)
Establishing a Company, Becoming a Partner, or Taking an Executive Role at a Company within Technology Development Zones
Under Article 7 of Law No. 4691 on Technology Development Zones, and with the permission of the University Administrative Board, our university's faculty members may establish a company within these zones, become a partner in an existing company, and/or take an executive role in such companies, in order to commercialize the results of their research.
To view the process for establishing a company within Technology Development Zones, please click here Turkish.
Related Documents
Points to Note
The decision on the company partner title is made only once, while other titles (Member of the Company's Board of Directors, Company Manager, Researcher, etc.) are renewed annually through an extension of the term of duty. For this reason, documents must be sent to us at least 2 weeks before the expiration date of the University Administrative Board (ÜYK) decision.
Contact
For Your Questions
You may contact us for your questions regarding assignment and company establishment processes and related documents.
Bedia Kazan Belgin
0 312 210 8300 / 1821