“We are building a leading technical university in the region, and we will only strengthen this in the future. Our goal is to establish an internationally recognized, innovative, and sustainable investor university!” – declared Prof. Dr. Levente Kovács at the Senate meeting of Obuda University, which also served as the opening ceremony of the Hungarian higher education academic year for the entire Carpathian Basin on September 9th. Speeches were delivered by Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Zsolt Semjén, Dr. András Cser-Palkovics, Mayor of Székesfehérvár and President of the Rudolf Kalman Foundation for Obuda University, and Dr. Veronika Varga-Bajusz, Deputy State Secretary for Higher Education at the Ministry of Culture and Innovation. The event was honored by the presence of Mihály Varga, Minister of Finance, former chairman of the university’s foundation board, and honorary doctor of Obuda University. During the ceremony, the Honorary Professor, Distinguished Professor, Consolidator Researcher Award, Starting Excellence Researcher, and Student Government Awards were presented.
While maintaining high academic standards, this year, a record-breaking 4,300 students are starting their studies at the university, the highest number in the institution’s history, highlighted Prof. Dr. Levente Kovács.
The Rector also extended a special welcome to students who participated in the Olympics, emphasizing the remarkable achievements of Kristóf Milák, who made sports history, with his gold medal also bringing pride to Obuda University. He also praised the performances of canoeists Balázs Adolf and Dániel Fejes, sports shooter Eszter Mészáros, and Norbert Tóth for their qualifications.
Prof. Dr. Levente Kovács emphasized the importance of supporting talented students from across the borders, which the university achieves through the successful operation of the Carpathian Basin Educational Center and the Technical Scientific Student Conference it founded. He mentioned the establishment of a unique innovation ecosystem as one of the most significant decisions in recent years. “Through our University Research and Innovation Center, we are establishing new research centers. Together with Toyota Sakura, we are creating the Hydrogen Research Center; with Magnus Aircraft Ltd., the Magnus Aerospace Center; with the Makronóm Institute, an Economic Research Center for Harmonious Growth; and for space research and technical development, we are establishing a SpaceLab Research Center.”
Dr. András Cser-Palkovics emphasized that all necessary conditions are in place, both infrastructurally, financially, and professionally, for another successful academic year at Obuda University. Reflecting on the significance of the event, he noted that both the city of Székesfehérvár and the university have a special responsibility to support Hungarian communities beyond the borders. He further added, “To ensure uninterrupted progress, unity among the university’s members is essential. The foundation will continue to support the university by securing the operational conditions.”
“Obuda University is a knowledge center that can be relied upon by the key societal stakeholders of our nation,” stated Dr. Veronika Varga-Bajusz, who also expressed her appreciation that the university has achieved prominent rankings in two international higher education rankings. She stressed that the number of students admitted to engineering programs has increased significantly nationwide, with Obuda University performing exceptionally well in this area.
Addressing the students, Dr. Zsolt Semjén noted that it is a great intellectual advantage for them to study in their native language. He added that the government sees it as a priority to extend this opportunity to young people living beyond Hungary’s borders. In his speech, he commended Obuda University for always making decisions with the interests of the Hungarian nation in mind and striving to preserve the unified Hungarian scientific language, with its value-preserving responsibility extending to the entire Carpathian Basin.
It was announced during the ceremony that, under the Stipendium Hungaricum program, students from 84 countries have arrived, and 179 students will begin their studies at Obuda University in the autumn semester.
Following the oath-taking ceremony, Prof. Dr. Levente Kovács welcomed the students as members of Obuda University. Levente Koppány Barcsa, President of the University Student Government, also gave a special welcome to the first-year students.
Awards and Recognitions
Following the ceremonial speeches, Rector Prof. Dr. Levente Kovács presented awards.
The title of Honorary Professor was awarded to Prof. Dr. Peter Mésároš, Prof. Dr. Ivana Štajner-Papuga, and Prof. Dr. Voicu Groza.
The Distinguished Professor Award was won by Philip Chen, Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at the South China University of Technology. The Consolidator Researcher Award was presented to Prof. Dr. József Kövecses, Director of the Mechanical Engineering Department and the CIM Applied Dynamics Group at McGill University, and Prof. Dr. Péter Galambos, Director of the Antal Bejczy Center for Intelligent Robotics at Obuda University and Vice Rector for Innovation.
The Rector gave special recognition to students who qualified for the Paris Olympics: Kristóf Milák, Balázs Adolf, Dániel Fejes, Eszter Mészáros, and Norbert Tóth.
Student Government Awards
István András Varga, a cyclist, was named Sportsman of the Year. The Public Life Employee of the Year Award went to Andrea Kozma-Loraszkó for her significant support of the Student Government at the Keleti Károly Faculty of Business and Management. This year’s Partner of the Year Award was given to Mavir Zrt. The Recognition for Work Award went to Levente Szőke for organizing the EFOTT Festival.
The Partium Christian University Choir from Oradea provided entertainment,
along with the Göncöl Folk Dance Ensemble and the university choir.
Among the attendees were leading representatives from embassies of Morocco, Turkey, Qatar, Azerbaijan, Tunisia, Kyrgyzstan, and Portugal. Additionally, foreign university partners from the Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Slovak University of Technology, Technical University of Košice, and the Promatech Research Center for Advanced Materials and Technologies were present, along with representatives of Hungarian-speaking partner institutions from the Carpathian Basin, including Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra and János Selye University from Slovakia, the Subotica Technical College, the University of Novi Sad, and the Zenta Consultation Center from Vojvodina, and the Partium Christian University, Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania, and the Protestant Theological Institute of Cluj-Napoca from Transylvania. From Transcarpathia, the Rector and President of the Ferenc Rákóczi II Transcarpathian Hungarian College of Higher Education and representatives from the Hungarian-Ukrainian Institute of Education and Science at Uzhhorod National University also attended the event.
