Highly successful first International Open Day at GTK
Representatives of the Faculty were eager to show secondary school pupils a viable alternative to studying abroad through the example of the youngest and most dynamically growing faculty of Hungary’s oldest and most prestigious university.
The day started with an introductory presentation on the faculty by Professor Gábor ZEMPLÉN, Vice-Dean for International Affairs (Karinthy Frigyes Secondary School alumnus), which described the two English-language degree programmes (International Business Economics and Finance & Accounting), as well as the extensive support system offered by the faculty. The details of the different course completion methods and of the assessment regime, which are all designed to help students optimise their workload based on their personality and study preferences, were particularly welcome by the participants.
Dr Judit FORTVINGLER, Vice-Dean for International Programmes (ELTE Trefort Secondary School alumna) highlighted the various local and international academic and extracurricular opportunities. Local offers include studying together with students from all over the world, completing online courses offered by prestigious European partner universities in the Charm-EU alliance, attending courses run by international companies, doing project work with visiting students from the Netherlands, case study competitions, etc. The most highly appreciated international opportunity available to our students is the Erasmus+ study abroad and traineeship schemes. Dr Fortvingler noted that international experience was important not only for personal growth but also to enhance one’s future employment chances. As ELTE is one of the few universities in Hungary which participate in the Erasmus+ scheme (as well as other international university programmes), GTK students have an excellent opportunity to gain real competitive advantage in the job market worldwide.
Dr Marcell Dülk, assistant professor (ELTE Radnóti Secondary School alumnus) gave a closer insight into the wide range of career opportunities in the business world from being an investment manager through working as a controller all the way to being employed as an international project manager. As all the different jobs require a different set of skills to succeed, these were also described in the presentation, giving prospective students a better understanding of what lies ahead of them after graduation.
The three presentations were followed by a fairly informal part: the “Parade of Nations” - a forum during which current students of the Faculty of Economics (Layla Gaziyeva, graduating student on the International Business Economics programme from Azerbaijan, Hagar Walid, a third-year Finance and Accounting student from Egypt, both Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship holders, and Rita Albittar, a second-year Finance and Accounting student from Syria) shared their experience as international students at ELTE GTK and answered questions posed by the participants about all aspects of their academic and student life.
The open day ended with a Campus Tour during which our visitors had the opportunity to marvel at the historic yet fully modernised buildings housing the Faculty. Students showed their future colleagues some of the classrooms, all equipped with the latest technology, the student lounges and kitchens, as well as the Video Library (where students can watch and rewatch the recorded lectures while preparing for their assessments) and the Exam Centre, where all computer-based midterms and exams take place. Naturally, the visitors continued to ask questions during the walk and, in fact, some of the most probing questions came up in this informal setting.
It was an honour for ELTE GTK to welcome such an open and lively crowd of young people. We hope many were convinced of not only the excellence of our faculty’s flexible and versatile academic offer but also of the friendly and vibrant atmosphere guaranteed by the Faculty’s student, academic, and administrative community.
Photos: Bence Végh