Bulu was appointed as the rector of Boğaziçi University by a government decree on 1 January 2021.

Having served as the Justice and Development Party's Sarıyer District President in 2002, Bulu was previously a candidate for nomination in the 2009 local election and the June 2015 general election.

His appointment was controversial and subject to protests by hundreds of students, professors, and lecturers, and by NGOs.

Prior to his position at Boğaziçi University, he was the rector of İstinye University and Haliç University and held faculty positions at Istanbul Commerce University and Istanbul Şehir University.