Hungary social briefing: The reasons for the Hungarian higher education system's reform
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ISSN: 2560-1601
Vol. 40, No. 3 (HU)
May 2021
Hungary social briefing:
The reasons for the Hungarian higher education system’s reform
Csaba Moldicz
1052 Budapest Petőfi Sándor utca 11.
+36 1 5858 690
Kiadó: Kína-KKE Intézet Nonprofit Kft.
office@china-cee.eu
Szerkesztésért felelős személy: Chen Xin
Kiadásért felelős személy: Huang Ping china-cee.eu
2017/01The reasons for the Hungarian higher education system’s reform
The development of the Hungarian economy is characterized by a deep asymmetric
dependence on the West for technology. The asymmetric dependence can be mitigated by trade
and investment diversification - the Hungarian Eastern Policy summarizes these efforts,
however long-term effects can only be achieved by securing an excellent business environment
in which the supply and quality of human resources can be improved in addition to the physical
environment. The Hungarian higher education system is key to improving this business
environment.
Introduction
This briefing looks at the main features of higher education reform, focusing on the
transformation of public universities into a hybrid model managed by boards of trustees. In the
new model, according to which most universities will function, private actors can also
contribute to the better functioning of universities. The briefing first presents the main economic
reasons for the transformation, then it places Hungarian universities in the international
landscape and also describes the political discourse on the transformation.
Innovation and digital performance
Hungary's performance in the digital economy and innovation lags behind the EU
average, although both elements are key to catching up with more advanced countries. The
report Innovation Scoreboard 2020, published every year by the European Commission,
distinguishes four groups of countries: innovation leaders, strong innovators, moderate
innovators, and modest innovators. Hungary belongs to the group of moderate innovators. From
the Central and Eastern European region, no country has moved up to the group of innovation
leaders, only Estonia is classified as a strong innovator, while all other countries in the region
are classified as moderate or modest innovators. The Digital Economy and Society Index
(DESI) of the European Commission shows a similar state of these countries, as it can be seen
in table 1, where only Estonia can be described as above the EU average.
1Table 1. Basic innovation indicators of the Central and Eastern European countries
Research and Digital Innovation
development Economy and Scoreboard 2020
expenditures in terms Society Index ranking***
of GDP ranking**
(2018, %) *
EU-27 2.18 - -
Bulgaria 0.76 28 26
Czech 1.90 17 16
Republic
Estonia 1.41 7 11
Croatia 0.97 20 25
Latvia 0.64 18 23
Lithuania 0.94 14 19
Hungary 1.53 21 22
Poland 1.21 23 24
Romania 0.50 26 27
Slovenia 1.95 16 15
Slovakia 0.84 22 21
Montenegro 0.50 - -
North 0.37 - -
Macedonia
Serbia 0.92 - -
Source: * Eurostat database; ** European Commission (2020b). The Digital Economy
and Society Index (DESI). Retrieved from: https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-
market/en/digital-economy-and-society-index-desi *** European Commission (2020a).
European Innovation Scoreboard 2020. Retrieved from:
https://ec.europa.eu/growth/industry/policy/innovation/scoreboards_en
To improve these figures and indicators, Hungary needs a modern and internationally
competitive higher education. Let's see how Hungarian universities compare internationally.
2Hungarian universities in international rankings
In April 2021, Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) published its latest ranking, which included
Hungarian universities. The best ranked is the University of Szeged (501-510), the second best
is the Debrecen University (521-530) and the third best is the Eoetvoes Loránd University in
Budapest (601-650). Looking at rankings in specific fields, there are some fields in which
Hungarian universities performed relatively great, however the rankings in the natural sciences
are not the best. The Budapest University of Technology and Economics is ranked 273rd in
engineering and the Semmelweis University is ranked 272nd in medical sciences.
The Times Higher Education ranking (Emerging Economies Universities) focuses on
emerging markets. In 2021, Semmelweis University ranks 64th among the 606 universities on
the list. The Eötvös Lóránd University (147th), the University of Pécs (155th) and the Szeged
University (195th) made it to the top 200, while other Hungarian universities performed less
successfully and did not receive ranks but margins. (E.g., Debrecen University was ranked
between 201 and 250.) Although significant differences in rankings can be observed between
Hungarian universities, the main message is that Hungarian universities do not perform well in
international comparison.
The argument for transformation is not only to be found in the rather poor performance
in the rankings, but mainly in the radical changes that the economy and society are undergoing
now, which must be reflected in the way how universities function. Change, which is best
captured in the digitalization process has socio-economic consequences and it requires
universities to adapt to change more easily and smoothly. At this point, it must be made clear
that Hungary is not alone in its ambition to modernize this sector, this is currently the
international mainstream.
The Hungarian government attaches great importance to improving the international
ranking of higher educational institutions. Part of this effort is to internationalize Hungarian
universities; to cooperate with and attract the world's leading universities in this field. It is clear
that the establishment of Fudan Budapest University is part of this clearly outlined strategy.
The philosophy of the transformation
The question arises as to why the education system is being transformed. The so-called
Bologna process from 1999 was also adopted in Hungary. On the one hand the new system
contributed to a wider acceptance of diplomas in the Single Market, on the other hand the
3reform did not take into account the specific needs of certain fields of study. At the same time,
the Bologna system also favored quantity over quality. In certain cases, the needs of the labor
market were not taken into account by the universities and under the pretext of university
autonomy local and partial interests were protected by the universities.
If the Hungarian public universities are transformed, it means that they will still perform
a public function in the interest of the public, but they will not function as central budgetary
institutions and the administrative powers of the university will go to the board of trustees
appointed at the head of the foundation. The foundation is a hybrid form in which private sector
actors can also have a say, but this form is by no means a disguised form of privatization, as
some analysts believe. By involving private players, more funds can be made available to the
respective universities, but more importantly this creates a direct link to the real economy,
which can give universities more direct feedback on how they should adapt to the new
challenges. According to the plans, with the exception of Budapest Corvinus University, the
state would remain a major funder of universities, acting as a purchaser for the performance of
public functions. The new rules and framework would give the university more room to
maneuver and allow it to adapt more smoothly to the changes.
The scale of the transformation becomes easy to understand when one considers that as
of September 2021, around 70 percent of Hungarian students will study at universities managed
by the new trust funds. With the exception of the University of Theater and Film Arts, the
transition at Hungarian universities went smoothly. So far, several universities have already
gone through the transition in 2019 and 2020, and more universities - according to plans – are
to through a similar transformation from August 2021 on.
1. Budapest Corvinus University;
2. Széchenyi István University in Győr;
3. Neumann János University in Kecskemét;
4. University of Miskolc;
5. Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design;
6. University of Veterinary Medicine;
7. University of Sopron
8. University of Theatre and Film Arts;
9. Szent István University in Gödöllő,
10. University of Pannonia;
11. Szeged University;
12. University of Pécs
413. University of Debrecen,
14. Semmelweis University
15. University of Dunaújváros
16. Budapest Business School, University of Applied Sciences
17. Óbuda University.
Summary
The reasons for change and reform may be summed up. The ultimate motivations stem
from the changing labor market, where Hungarian companies need more updated skills. This
would be the basis on which other economic policies (innovation, technology, and science
policies) can be built. The quality and quantity of the skilled workforce must be provided by
the universities, whose performance is rather weak in international comparison, as we could see
in the international rankings of higher education. The transformation of universities aims to
bring universities closer to the needs of the real economy and to maintain the state as the main
regulator and financier of the sector. The transformation is not without social and political
debates, the main argument of the opponents is that the government wants to secure its financial
base in case it loses the elections in 2022. The problem with this argument, however, is that
rectors and chancellors could previously be appointed directly by the government and now in
the new system, from 2022, the Ministry of Technology and Innovation would be able to
delegate the founder's rights to the board of trustees.
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