On 1 August the Széchenyi István University Foundation assumed controlling authority of Széchenyi István University, which in this way continues to operate as a state-recognized private higher education institution. This represents a milestone in the life of the university, and the new opportunities are indicated by the fact that at their meeting at the end of September, the board of trustees of the Foundation took the decision to donate 53 million forints to the Universitas-Győr Foundation to recognize the achievements of students in sports and learning as well as the work of academics in the scientific field.

“As a result of the model change, it has become possible to support and encourage students and lecturers-researchers in the development of their talents and creativity. In this way, the university, which in recent years has become one of Hungary's leading knowledge centres, can enhance its position both at home and in the international sphere, as well as its competitiveness and its contribution to the development of the national economy. By recognizing excellence, the Foundation, as controller of the institution, seeks to promote the raising of standards in the institution's scientific and educational activities. It is also important to increase student motivation in order to achieve the best possible academic and sports results,” emphasized Dr Erzsébet Knáb, chairman of the board of trustees, speaking about the background to the decision.

Photo: József Csaba Májer

University President, Dr Bálint Filep, underlined the fact that the common goal is for the young people who choose Széchenyi István University to acquire competitive knowledge, while employees are to be motivated to fulfil their professional careers by both ethical and material appreciation that recognizes performance. He added that the donation of 53 million forints facilitates all of this, and thanked the board of trustees for the support. "We expect the model change not only to create a more flexible, predictable and plannable operating environment than before, but also to build a university that is very attractive to young people and that values both its teachers and students," said the President.

Thanks to the support of the Széchenyi István University Foundation, the Universitas-Győr Foundation has recently published three calls for scholarship applications for the current academic year. Széchenyi István University Foundation’s Sports Scholarship and Student Scholarship can be won by full-time students who set an example for the community with their outstanding sports performance and academic and scientific work. The former is awarded seven times per semester and the latter ten times. The scholarship amounts to a one-off 300,000 forints per winner.

The Széchenyi István University Foundation Scientific Scholarship can be awarded to teaching and research staff of Széchenyi István University whose publications are ascribed to the author in the Scopus database and where Széchenyi István University features exclusively as the author’s affiliation on the publication. Forty million forints is available to cover this scholarship. The amount of the scholarship is determined on the basis of Scimago's Q1-Q4 journal ranking, and a net amount of 200,000 to 600,000 forints per person can be won. The highest amount is available to those who write a Q1 article in collaboration with at least two co-authors with different foreign institutional affiliations.

In answer to our question, Dr Eszter Lukács, Vice-Rector for Educational Affairs emphasized the fact that the purpose of establishing the scientific scholarship is the moral and material recognition of those working in the academic field, for which thanks goes both to the chairman of the board of The Széchenyi István University Foundation and to the President of the University. She considered it important to note that the criteria include citation indicators from the Scopus database and Scimago, because the two largest global higher education ranking organizations - QS and Times Higher Education - take these exclusively into account when compiling university rankings.

The deadline for applications in the first semester is 31 January and in the second semester 30 June. These scholarships represent a new opportunity for members of the university community, as with the change in controlling authority of the University, not only those programmes attracting state scholarships, but naturally scholarships and student benefits available until now have also been retained.