İkbal Sezen Polat is an architect and PhD student in Architectural History at Middle East Technical University (METU), holding a BA from Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University. She is currently a Research Assistant at Gebze Technical University’s Department of Architecture. Her research on the cemeteries of Constantinople/Istanbul during the Byzantine and Ottoman periods earned her the Best MAThesis Award in Social Sciences at METU. She has presented her research at international conferences in Switzerland, Netherlands, UK, and USA, where she has received accolades including the Scott F. Opler Fellowship from the Society of Architectural Historians (SAH). She is also part of the DocTalks organising team, an online platform for PhD students in architectural history and theory.