The Hungarian government has allocated a HUF 200 billion or €542 million fund to the development of 20 state-owned and private universities as the first phase of a €731 million scheme, the authorities reveal.
According to a press release issued by the official website, this fund will be distributed to higher education institutions such as universities, colleges and vocational training for their development of infrastructure and science parks, SchengenVisaInfo reports.
“László Palkovics, Minister for Innovation and Technology, said on Wednesday that the government is ploughing HUF 200 billion (€539 million) into the development of infrastructure and science parks at 20 universities which are either run by the state or by government-backed foundations,” the press release reads.
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He also pointed out that about two per cent of the country’s GDP this year is dedicated to the maintenance and development of universities, which according to him, puts Hungary among the leaders in the European Union.
Moreover, this fund will be shared between the Budapest University of Technology, Andrássy University, the University of Veterinary Science, four medical universities such as the Óbuda University, the Miskolc University, and the Hungarian Dance University, as the first education search platform, Erudera.com reveals.
Previously, the Education Secretary, Balázs Hankó, revealed that Hungarian universities rank internationally high in almost every field, which according to him, has been possible due to the modernisation of higher education institutions.
“The aim has been to provide universities with a structure that allows them greater flexibility and autonomy so they can be competitive both at home and abroad. This is why we have provided them with the appropriate legal framework, institutional profiles and significant resources,” the Education Secretary, Hankó, said.
According to universities’ ranking sites, Hungarian universities are listed in the 500th spot on an international level, with the leading institution being the University of Szeged (551-560), followed by the University of Debrecen (591-600) and Eötvös Loránd University (651-700). Nonetheless, in comparison to other European universities, Eötvös Loránd University Budapest is ranked 171st.
Furthermore, based on data published by Statista, the number of international students in Hungary has decreased by 2.1 per cent in the 2020/2021 academic year, declining to 32,400 from 33,100 recorded in the previous academic year. Additionally, the number of international students in the country has been on an upward trend since 2009, starting with 14,300 foreign students, recording a year-on-year increase of 131.4 per cent since then.
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