Dr. Yilmaz has served as the Research Coordinator for both the Centre for Human Rights and Restorative Justice (CHRRJ) and the Centre for Global Peace, Justice and Health (CGPJH). She also holds the position of Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of History at McMaster University.
HIGHLIGHTS at McMaster University (2018–present)
- Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of History
- Co-founded the Centre for Human Rights and Restorative Justice (CHRRJ) alongside the Founding Director, Dr. Bonny Ibhawoh, and co-led its establishment across all phases and levels between 2019-2021.
- Research Coordinator: Organizing and coordinating all aspects of conferences, workshops, and events at both research centres; overseeing the Centre's day-to-day operations, including financial administration, project coordination, research funding applications (particularly SSHRC grants), social media and website management, and internal and external communications.
- Hiring Manager: Hiring RA process, training, supervising and orientation of RAs
- Web Content Manager: Planning, creating, organizing, publishing, and maintaining content across the websites of both research centres
- Administrator: Served as an administrator for 4 successful research funding applications, securing a total of $7,540,000 in grants.
- Instructor: Developed and taught the course “The Voices of Refugees and Displaced Persons” at McMaster University
- Appointed as McMaster's Global Ambassador by the Office of International Affairs.
International Experience (2005-present)
With approximately 20 years of international teaching experience, I have worked, lived, and conducted studies across Africa, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, Europe, and North America. Throughout my career, I have held administrative roles at every university where I taught. My most recent position was as the Director of the Institute of Languages and African Studies at Regent University in Ghana. Additionally, I have been a visiting scholar or researcher at several prestigious institutions, including the University of Selangor (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), the University of Johannesburg (South Africa), the University of Zurich (Switzerland), and the University of Birmingham (UK), where I completed my Ph.D. thesis.
Research interests: Global Human Rights, Immigration and Refugee Issues, Truth Commissions, Restorative and Transitional Justice, Generational Trauma and Genocides, Education of Youth
Teaching interests: Comparative and Contemporary Literature, including African and Soviet literature, Human Rights and Postcolonial Literature, Refugee Rights, Protection and Forced Migration
Consulting: Education of Children, Youth and Girls
