Dr. Deniz has her current research in the areas of Sustainable Construction, Building Information Modeling (BIM), Virtual Reality (VR), and Construction Education. Her previous research has included the above topics, as well as other construction management areas such as life cycle assessment, construction simulation and modeling, systems dynamics, risk management, and decision-making. Her dissertation entitled: An Integrated Multi-Agent Framework for Optimizing Time, Cost and Environmental Impact of Construction Processes focused on optimizing time, cost and environmental impact of construction processes. She worked with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to research sustainable methods of highway resurfacing projects under a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant. She used Analytical Network Process (ANP), Systems Dynamics, and multi-objective optimization in her methodology. She has performed research on innovative and effective teaching methods in hybrid and online courses in connection with the pedagogical aspects of Sustainable Construction, BIM, and VR. She has been presenting at local and national conferences related to course and curriculum development, team-based learning, hybrid and online teaching, and innovative teaching/learning strategies.

Her latest research includes VR implementation in the construction curricula by performing virtual walk-throughs in 3D models to improve students' learning. VR Design Reviews and VR Implementation in the Construction Industry are the newest topics she has been exploring with the help of research grants and initiatives. She has explored her research areas to include Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) Implementation in Construction. Dr. Deniz has more than 40 publications in peer-reviewed journals and proceedings in the above-mentioned research areas. She has been a reviewer of respective journals and conferences, including the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), Elsevier, and Associated Schools of Construction (ASC). Her studies continue in the areas of BIM, VR, and Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects.

Dr. Deniz is the Chair of the Construction Management Department at Jefferson. She manages B.S. in Construction Management (ABET-ANSAC Accredited), M.S. in Construction Management On-Campus, M.S. in Construction Management Online, 1+1 M.S. in Sustainable Design & M.S. in Construction Management, 1+1 M.S. Construction Management & M.S. in Real Estate Development, and the Graduate Construction Management Certificate Programs. She is also an Associate Professor (tenured) and the Graduate Advisor in the Construction Management (CM) Department. Dr. Deniz received her B.S. and M.S. in Civil Engineering from Middle East Technical University (METU) in Turkey and her Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Florida International University (FIU) in Miami, FL. She is a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Accredited Professional (AP) and has experience in commercial and LEED-certified buildings. She is a member of the Associated Schools of Construction (ASC), Construction Management Association of America (CMAA), General Building Contractors Association (GBCA-local chapter of AGC), Professional Women in Construction (PWC), and Sigma Lambda Chi ETA V Chapter. Additionally, she holds membership for the following professional societies: Academic Interoperability Coalition (AiC), ASCE Data Sensing and Analysis (DSA) Committee, ASCE Visualization, Information Modeling, and Simulation (VIMS) Committee, ASCE Education Committee, and Autodesk Design Academy Building Performance Analysis (BPA) Group. 

As the Chair of the Construction Management (CM) Department, Dr. Deniz is responsible for leading and growing Jefferson’s B.S. in CM (ABET-ANSAC Accredited), M.S. in CM On-Campus, M.S. in CM Online, and the Graduate CM Certificate Programs. Her core responsibilities include the improvement of both undergraduate (BSCM) and graduate (MSCM) curricula, expansion of existing program offerings, course and program assessment, faculty support and mentoring, and student recruitment. She has been collaborating with Jefferson CM’s Industry Advisory Board to build and sustain strong ongoing relationships with the professional construction community. Dr. Deniz is a member of the University Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure (APT) Committee, the CABE Executive Committee, and the CABE Assessment Committee. She has been working to streamline the assessment of student work for the Middle States of Higher Education and Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology(ABET) Applied and Natural Science Accreditation Commission (ANSAC) accreditation bodies. 

Dr. Deniz teaches core courses and electives in undergraduate and graduate Construction Management programs, including Construction Information Modeling, Construction Environmental Management, and Master’s Project. She is offering on-campus, hybrid, and online courses. She has completed the Quality Matters (QM) Teaching Online Program (7 Certificates) and the University of Pennsylvania’s Online and Blended Teaching Certification related to teaching. 

Prior to becoming the Chair of the Construction Management Programs, she was an Assistant Professor of Construction Management at Thomas Jefferson University. Prior to joining Thomas Jefferson University, Dr. Deniz was a Construction Management Professor for four years in the Department of Civil and Architectural Engineering and Construction Management at Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) in Milwaukee, WI. She has taught a variety of courses in the areas of Building Information Modeling (BIM), Sustainable Design and Construction, LEED, Construction Estimating and Scheduling, Surveying, and other project management topics.