Contact:
e-mail: beste-basciftci [at] uiowa.edu
Department of Business Analytics, Tippie College of Business, University of Iowa
Twitter: @BesteBasciftci
I am an Assistant Professor at the Department of Business Analytics at the Tippie College of Business at the University of Iowa. I am further affiliated with the Applied Mathematical and Computational Sciences program. I obtained my doctoral degree in Operations Research from the H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology. I received my bachelor's degrees in Industrial Engineering and Computer Engineering (double major) from Boğaziçi University with High Honors. I also hold a master's degree in Industrial Engineering from Boğaziçi University.
I am broadly interested in data-driven decision making problems under uncertainty. My research focuses on developing stochastic programming, (distributionally) robust optimization, and mixed-integer/discrete optimization approaches to address methodological and practical challenges arising in operations research and management related problems. The application areas of these problems mainly involve energy systems and sustainability, supply chains and facility location problems, and emerging transportation and sharing systems. I am further interested in integrating business analytics frameworks as part of these optimization approaches. I am honored to receive prestigious research awards, including the INFORMS ENRE (Energy, Natural Resources and the Environment Section) Early Career Best Paper Award (Runner-up), IISE Transactions Best Paper Award in Focus Issue of Operations Engineering & Analytics, Tippie College of Business Social Impact Research Award, University of Iowa Early Career Scholar Award and Georgia Tech ISyE Alice and John Jarvis Research Award.
Some Recent News:
I am honored to serve as the Cluster Chair of Optimization under Uncertainty at the INFORMS Computing Society Conference 2025.
I am honored to receive the INFORMS ENRE (Energy, Natural Resources and the Environment Section) Early Career Best Paper Award (Runner-up) 2024. Thankful for this recognition for our joint paper with my PhD student Natalie Randall.
I am honored to receive the University of Iowa Tippie College of Business Social Impact Research Award 2024, thankful for this recognition!
I have been invited to give seminars at the MIT Energy Initiative and University of Groningen during Spring 2024. Thanks for these visits and invitations!
I am happy to be a speaker and co-host at the FutureBAProf 2023 and 2024, which is a workshop for PhD students and post-docs—especially women, individuals from underrepresented groups—to prepare them as next generation of scholars and educators in the fields of Business Analytics.
I have been invited to be give a seminar at the Stochastic Programming Society Seminar Series and gave a talk on "Partially Adaptive Stochastic Programming Approaches". Thanks for the invitation!
Assistant Professor Xian Yu and I have co-organized two sessions at the INFORMS Optimization Society Conference 2024 on Multi-stage stochastic programs and Recent advancements on optimization under decision-dependent uncertainty.
Congratulations to my PhD student Natalie Randall for being selected to the Georgia Tech ISyE Junior Researcher Workshop 2024!
I am honored to be elected as a board member of the INFORMS Computing Society starting from January 2024.
I am honored to receive Transportation Science Meritorious Service Award 2023.
I have organized a session at the INFORMS Annual Conference 2023 on "Multi-Stage Stochastic and Robust Programs" and our research group have been invited to give various talks.
It was a pleasure hosting Sezen Ece Kayacik in our group as a visiting PhD student from the University of Groningen during Fall 2023.
I am organizing a mini-symposium session at the International Conference on Stochastic Programming 2023 on "Distributionally Robust Optimization with Recent Advancements".
I am honored to receive the University of Iowa Office of the Vice President for Research Early Career Scholar Award!
I have been invited to give a seminar at the University of Texas at Austin Operations Research and Industrial Engineering Program Departmental Seminars. Thanks for the invitation!
I have been invited to give a seminar at the Johns Hopkins University Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics Postdoc Seminars (virtual). Thanks for the invitation!
I am in the Program Committee of the CPAIOR 2023 Conference.
I have been invited to be a speaker at the INFORMS Workshop on Transit Oriented Innovations in Emerging Mobility – Service Designs, Algorithms and Societal Implications. Thanks for the invitation!
Congratulations to my PhD student Natalie Randall for receiving Amazon SCOT Informs Scholarship!
I have been invited to be a mini-symposium speaker at the European Conference on Stochastic Optimization 2022. Thanks for the invitation!
I have been invited to be a speaker at the Mixed-Integer Programming Workshop 2022. Thanks for the invitation!
I am organizing a session at the INFORMS Optimization Society Conference 2022 on "Optimizing Network Design and Pricing in Emerging Transportation Systems" and also have been invited to give a talk.
I have been invited to give a seminar at the University of Wisconsin-Madison ISyE Departmental Colloquium Series. Thanks for the invitation!
I have been in the Program Committee of the CPAIOR 2022 Conference (19th International Conference on the Integration of Constraint Programming, Artificial Intelligence, and Operations Research).
I am honored to receive IISE Transactions Best Paper Award in Focus Issue of Operations Engineering & Analytics with our paper "Data-Driven Maintenance and Operations Scheduling in Power Systems under Decision-Dependent Uncertainty"!