Non-central European university

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btThe controversy surrounding the Central European University seems to be all the rage these days. Well, in Budapest anyways; if you ask someone in the countryside, there is a good chance they will tip the CEU to be a law enforcement agency or some sort of new computer virus. They simply don’t care and nor should they. The proposed legislation and whether the university will continue to offer its services in Hungary will not affect their lives in any way. Here are three reasons why (don’t expect a clever conclusion to this piece, I’m merely offering three facts, which will perhaps put the whole issue into perspective): 1. The law will not affect how Hungarian universities operate. In fact, it will not affect how CEU operates its masters courses accredited in Hungary. That’s because there are two CEUs: the CEU, which offers studies not accredited in Hungary (that’s the part all the fuss is about), and KEE – which translates to CEU –, which hands out Hungarian diplomas. 2. The CEU is not a regular university. It does not offer graduate courses, but only various master’s programmes. And make no mistake: they do so at a pretty hefty price, starting at EUR 9100 per academic year. 3. The CEU is not the best university in the region, as many on the left started to claim. In reality it’s not even the best in Hungary. According to the 2017 University Ranking by Academic Performance, ELTE ranks highest among those in the world (#586), followed by Semmelweis University (604), the universities of Debrecen (620) and Szeged (662), BME (775), PTE (905), SZIE (1533) and the CEU, which came 1655th.    Attila Leitner

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2 Comments

  1. Eric says:
    16 May, 2017 at 9:53

    This editorial should not be published without noting that the author is on the payroll of a right-wing media empire controlled by associated of Victor Orban. I expect better editorial integrity of the Budapest Times.

    http://hvg.hu/itthon/20150415_Valaszhu_Habony_Arpad_lett_az_uj_jobbolda?s=hk

  2. Margaret Jenkins says:
    16 May, 2017 at 12:14

    Does Budapest Times not fact-check its submissions? Almost every claim in this article is false. According to the 2017 World University Rankings, CEU is the top-ranking university in Hungary (301-350). Moreover, the statement that “CEU does not offer graduate courses, but only various master’s programmes” is also incorrect. Master’s courses are graduate courses so perhaps the author should clarify his understanding of what a graduate course is. CEU offers both master’s and PhD level programmes so the idea that it “only offers various master’s programmes” is just plain wrong. The “hefty price” quoted in the piece is also incorrect, as evident from a quick review of CEU’s website. Many students that are accepted to CEU also secure scholarships and financial aid. Sloppy, inaccurate and misleading editorial. If you are going to make a point, don’t base it on lies.