About the Call

The Social Research and Innovation Institute (SAYE) 2026 Project Call, supported by the Presidency of Strategy and Budget of the Republic of Türkiye and the Council of Higher Education, and coordinated by Ankara Social Sciences University within the framework of the cooperation protocol including Middle East Technical University, are now open.

The SAYE Programme supports data-driven, innovative and practice-oriented research addressing societal challenges. The call encourages interdisciplinary approaches and is open to researchers from all disciplines, including engineering, natural sciences, health sciences, education, architecture, social sciences, and humanities.

The programme particularly welcomes project proposals related to areas such as population and ageing, family, women, children, youth, education, employment and working life, health, social services and social assistance, income distribution, disability services, international migration, Turkish citizens living abroad, culture and arts, sports, civil society, natural disasters, the twin transition, and the impacts of international tensions on social sectors.

• the twin transition
• international migration
• disability services
• employment and working life
• population and ageing
• health
• children, youth, women, family
• education
• social services and social assistance 
• income distribution
• culture & arts, sports

Key Information About the Call

• Applications are open to researchers from all disciplines.
• Only researchers from the partner universities — Middle East Technical University, Ankara Social Sciences University, Hacettepe University, İhsan Doğramacı Bilkent University, and Marmara University — are eligible to apply as project coordinators.
• METU faculty members, postdoctoral researchers, and PhD candidates at the dissertation stage are eligible to apply as project coordinators or partners.
• There is no budget limitation within the programme; however, budget items are expected to be clearly justified and aligned with project activities.