THE AIM IS HIGHER EDUCATION THAT IS INTERNATIONALLY COMPETITIVE

24-07-2015

News | Higher education

Results of the Campus Hungary Programme

„Internationalisation is of fundamental interest for Hungarian higher education, and it should be supported by every person working in higher education.” – said Gergely Prőhle, Deputy State Secretary for international and EU Bilateral Relations at the conference in Pécs, Hungary, presenting the results of the Campus Hungary programme.

The programme started in 2012 with the aim to support and facilitate the internationalisation of Hungarian higher education through providing institutional development and scholarships for students, academics and staff. It contributed to the academic and cultural internationalization of European higher education, and it increased international mobility and exchange with the funding of the European Commission. The Tempus Public Foundation in consortium with the Balassi Institute managed this programme between until June 2015.

At the conference Péter Tordai, Director of the Tempus Public Foundation said: „Initiatives which have achieved significant results in supporting internationalisation through the Campus Hungary programme will be continued in the future as a priority project within the financing framework of the Human Resource Development Operational Programme.

The final event of the CH programme was a conference representing the results achieved in the past 3 years in the convergence regions of Hungary.

Main outcomes of the project:

  • providing professional courses such as international marketing in higher education and intercultural and sensitivity courses, attended by 492 persons in 6 regions of the country;
  • by providing trainings for students, they helped 734 people to get prepared for their scholarships;
  • by involving international experts, they have accomplished an internationalisation audit process at 6 higher education institutions;
  • promoted international scholarships in 70 secondary schools;
  • encouraged international networking by representing the Hungarian higher education and its main institutions at 14 international fairs, from the United States to China;
  • developed and launched the Study in Hungary website http://www.studyinhungary.hu/ .

Gábor Dobos, Head of Unit at the Tempus Public Foundation said that in Hungary most participants of the scholarship programmes come from the central region of the country, so part of the programme focused on mobilising  young people from other regions. 63 per cent of participants in their training events applied later for an international scholarship.

Besides promoting international exchange projects, the other main goal of the programme was  to make the Hungarian higher education system visible in the field of education both within and outside of Europe. According to the research findings of the Academic Cooperation Association, in terms of internationalisation, Hungary is ranked in the middle, in comparison with countries of similar economical background. Medical science programmes offered by Hungarian universities are very popular among international students, but other science programmes seem to be less attractive for young people.

Audits looking at the international activity of institutions focused on the causes and possible solutions for this issue. Developed with the help of international experts, Tempus Public Foundation completed an accreditation process to provide a clear picture for university leaders on where their institution stands in terms of internationalisation. The aim is to encourage the planning of international activity in a more structured way; to improve internal and external communication and knowledge management at institutions; and to generate leaders who are committed to representing the institution professionally in the field of international education.

 

Last modified: 15-12-2022