Lecturer in the Discipline of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research at Columbia University
​At Columbia, Yaren teaches core Master’s courses such as IEOR E4004 Optimization Models and Methods and IEOR 4150 Introduction to Probability and Statistics, as well as electives for both Master’s and undergraduate students, including IEOR E4505 Operations Research in Public Policy, IEOR E4507 Healthcare Operations Management, and IEOR E4524 Analytics in Practice. In her teaching, she emphasizes interactive learning, bringing real-world problems into the classroom to demonstrate how data-driven mathematical models can inform decision-making.
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She is also part of the faculty task force for Artificial Intelligence for Social Good and Society. Beyond Columbia, Yaren serves as co-chair of the INFORMS Committee on Teaching and Learning (CTL) Teaching Excellence and Networking (TEN) Workshop, where she works to advance excellence and innovation in operations research education.
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Yaren Bilge Kaya is a Lecturer in the Industrial Engineering and Operations Research Department at Columbia University. Her teaching and research focus on applying large-scale optimization, simulation modeling, and machine learning to advance social justice, equity, and access – particularly within housing and healthcare contexts. Recognizing the complexity of these challenges, she takes a community-based approach that centers the voices and needs of all stakeholders.