Establishing Long-term Relationships with the Óbuda University in Hungary
On September 26th, the scientific leaders of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava visited Óbuda University. The delegation arrived with the goal of expanding and reinforcing the relationship that has existed between the two universities for over ten years.
During the preliminary meeting prior to the discussions, we talked about our recent achievements and our intentions for collaboration with the scientific leaders of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava," said Prof. Dr. Levente Kovács, the rector of the university.
He added that our cooperation will encompass various areas, including the development of KMOOC course materials, the exchange of experiences related to operating scientific and innovation parks, and joint educational and research projects.
During the meeting, led by the General Vice-Rector of Óbuda University Prof. Dr. András Molnár, the parties identified the topics in which they wish to bring about changes or establish cooperation with the guest university.
One outstanding and indispensable point among these topics, which will be implemented in the near future, is the establishment of working groups between the faculties of the two technical universities. The aim was not only to create joint subject programs for master's degrees but also to lay the foundation for joint PhD. supervisions.
In addition to these discussions, the Vice-Rector presented the activities of the KMOOC, the Carpathian Basin Online Education Center, and invited representatives of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava to collaborate on the development of KMOOC online course materials.
He also requested that they expand their cooperation in organizing various events and conferences, and suggested that the organization of the 2025 INES Conference could take place within the walls of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava.
Other areas of discussion included joint research programs, publications, student mobility, and the exchange of visiting lecturers.
On behalf of Rector Prof. Dr. Levente Kovács, he extended an invitation to them for a forum scheduled for November 24th this year, which will discuss the criteria of the Times Higher Education (THE) rankings. The analysis of the situation of Central and Eastern European universities and their positions in international rankings will be at the forefront of this forum.
Prof. Dr. Oliver Moravčík, the Rector of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, expressed agreement with the common goals, areas of cooperation, and emphasized the opportunities within the teaching and student exchange programs. As he mentioned, the experiences gained at Óbuda University related to international rankings will be extremely valuable for their university.
In response to the Rector's remarks regarding Erasmus, Dr. habil. Ervin Rácz, Vice-Rector for Education, mentioned the "Mobility Window" program initiated by Rector Prof. Dr. Levente Kovács, which will require mandatory student participation in mobility programs.
At the end of the meeting, representatives of the universities reached consensus on numerous points and raised activities that they plan to jointly implement in the future.
An important point of discussion was the goal of improving international rankings through the joint projects of the two universities.
Representatives from the Slovak Technical University suggested sharing their best university projects with Óbuda University to jointly develop them, which would open up new perspectives in achieving their cooperative goals.
Members of the Slovak delegation warmly welcomed the idea of collaborating with Óbuda University and encouraged an open and flexible cooperation between the two institutions.
A significant highlight was the idea of jointly organizing conferences and publishing collaboratively.
The Slovak delegation believed it would be beneficial for Óbuda University's faculty to participate in certain events organized by them, where networking and relationship-building could be more dynamic.
