Universities
Higher education in Hungary has traditionally had a good reputation, with international students from around the globe choosing one of the country’s outstanding universities for their studies. Moreover, it is not only institutions in Budapest that are sought-after places, but also universities and colleges for advanced studies in other big cities across the country.
Many universities in Hungary are still public institutions, where residents can study free of charge, with free health insurance until the end of their studies too. The system of state-run institutions and the accreditation of private institutions is supervised by the Ministry of Human Resources. The varied universities offer educational curricula and related degrees up to PhD level, most commonly taught in Hungarian, although there are also various other options, including in English and German, the most important foreign languages in the Hungarian economy.
Different rankings comparing universities and colleges use various indicators to create lists of the best institutions, and Hungarian establishments regularly appear midway down lists of the best thousand higher education institutions. But how many universities are we talking about?
The network of Hungarian higher education institutions is very extensive in relation to the country’s territory, population and number of students. As detailed below, there are now more private than state institutions, with churches, companies and foundations featuring among non-state maintainers, which have to undergo an accreditation procedure. The number of different institutions is as follows:
- 17 state universities,
- 21 non-state universities,
- 1 state college,
- 24 non-state colleges.
In addition to university studies, a wide range of institutions provide their ambitious, high-performing students with the opportunity to join student research societies to deepen their knowledge in their educational fields and take part in scientific work, be it individual or collective research. These ancillary activities are always supervised by their tutors, ensuring that their results and achievements can be presented to a broader audience at the Annual Scientific Students’ Associations Conference.
Constant economic growth has increased the demand for highly skilled workers, which can only be achieved through a well-structured, versatile higher education system, supplemented by talent management, while also providing research opportunities for the future working generation.