One of the strategic goals of Széchenyi István University is to increase its global visibility, in which it has made great strides in recent years. Dr Eszter Lukács, Vice Rector for Educational Affairs noted that the student community is now made up of young people from 55 countries, with the number of foreign students exceeding 600, and the number of English-taught programmes totalling 35. Another milestone in this process is the fact that the institution has been added to the lists of the two largest global university rankings organizations. One is QS, which, based on research and scientific results, basically publishes its annual rankings lists, since 2019 including Széchenyi University, which this year has improved its position by 28 places in the Eastern European and Central Asian region to reach 173rd place. The other is THE, which in addition to its traditional list, has this year, for the third time, compiled an equally important ranking, assessing the world’s higher education institutions on the basis of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. As in the previous year, Széchenyi István University again appears in the latest recently published rankings.

“ Already supported by the model change, we carry out our activities based on the knowledge pentagon. The essence of this is the close relationship of the University with the industrial, governmental and civil, ecclesiastical and media stakeholders, emphasizing aspects of co-existence with the natural environment and sustainable development. The excellent result achieved in the THE ranking represents another positive feedback in this area, and it is also important because one of the primary considerations for foreign students when choosing a university is which institutions are included in the global rankings. The current position can thus further strengthen our internationalization efforts, ”said Dr Lukács.

Dr Eszter Lukács, Vice Rector for Educational Affairs (photo: Csaba József Májer)

In addition to university education, the authors of the THE list examined good practices in institutional operation and all other activities that have a value-creating effect in the narrower and wider environment, from knowledge dissemination to government experts’ work. Also taken into account are those publications related to the UN Sustainable Development Goals which are registered by university researchers and feature in the Scopus database.

Széchenyi István University has been ranked among the 200 best higher education institutions in the world in the category of “sustainable cities and communities” which concerns resource management, as well as examining the role of universities in maintaining and preserving the heritage of communities, mapping for example their sustainability research and practices. Based on this, the institution belongs to the elite of international higher education in terms of its commitment to sustainability, together with, for example, the Universities of Valencia, Bordeaux, Aalborg, Turku, as well as the universities of Ritsumeikan and Osaka, Japan.

The University of Győr also performed excellently in the category “decent work and economic growth”, in which it was listed in position 301–400, together with the universities of Reykjavik, Salamanca, Sao Paulo, Sussex and the United Arab Emirates. Here, their role as engines of economic growth and their employer responsibilities were scrutinized, taking into account research in economic fields and the proportion of students in internships.

Széchenyi István University reached the top 600 in the category “Reducing Inequalities”, along with the Universities of Lucerne, Sao Paulo, Tokyo International, Seville, Osaka and Florida International, among others. It looked at the institutions' research on social inequalities, anti-discrimination measures, the proportion of students from developing countries and first-generation students, and the number of students and staff with disabilities.

In the category of “quality education”, Széchenyi István, grouped for example with Bergen, Foggia, the French Panthéon-Sorbonne, Ritsumeikan, Tokyo International and Nagoya Universities reached position 601-800 for which, in addition to research in this field, the contribution to childhood and lifelong learning was also taken into account. The education of first generation university students and the number of students in teacher training were also assessed as advantages.

Széchenyi István University competes among the best in the world in the “partnership for achieving goals” category, advancing 200 places in one year to reach place 401–600, in the company of such illustrious HEIs as Tampere, Panthéon-Sorbonne, Cardiff, Ajou in South Korea, the Swedish Linnaeus and Taipei Medical University, among others. This ranking shows how universities support the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals via their collaboration with other countries, governments and NGOs as well as research and education.

The SZE student community is now made up of young people originating from 55 countries.

(Photo: József Csaba Májer)