Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ayça Demet Atay is a full time lecturer at the Department of Journalism of the Faculty of Communication in Near East University. She had her secondary education in German High School of Istanbul and Cottage Grove High School in Oregon USA, as a participant of the American Field Service (AFS) Intercultural Programs.

She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and international relations at Boğaziçi University in Turkey. After completion of her bachelor degree she worked as a reporter, editor and columnist for various national daily newspapers in Turkey She is the recipient of Abdi İpekçi Peace and Friendship Award in Journalism in 2002.

In 2005 she received the Rotary World Peace Fellowship and completed her Master of Arts degree in conflict resolution at the University of Bradford in the United Kingdom. She also received a Postgraduate Diploma in Research Methods for Social Sciences from the same university. She earned her doctoral degree in communication and media studies at Eastern Mediterranean University in North Cyprus. Her research interests include peace journalism, peace and communication, political communication and media and democracy.