Debrecen4U September 8, 2025

Tradition and innovation define the University of Debrecen

Tamás Sulyok, head of state, asked students and teachers to be proud of Hungarian higher education at the opening of the academic year in the Főnix Arena.

Tradition and innovation define the University of Debrecen, as well as Hungarian higher education—the President of the Republic stated at the opening of the academic year ceremonial senate session of the higher education institution of the Hajdúság county seat on Sunday.

Tamás Sulyok said that the unity of tradition and innovation ensures that Hungarian universities not only preserve our values but also lead in the sciences that shape the future and asked students and lecturers to be proud of Hungarian higher education, which has given the world such outstanding figures as János Neumann, Albert Szent-Györgyi, Katalin Karikó, and Ferenc Krausz.

“Our nation ranks eleventh in the ranking of Nobel laureates relative to population; this is not only the glory of our past but also the promise of our future,” the head of state explained.

The University of Debrecen is currently in its heyday, with almost fifty thousand students and a presence beyond the city’s borders, and its leaders have been able to make use of the structural opportunities of the past twenty-five years and have further built the university’s reputation and network of contacts, the head of state emphasized.

Tamás Sulyok recalled that Debrecen has always held a special place in the history of Hungarian culture, and its university is considered the pride of all of Hungary, where education is provided in thirteen faculties, from the humanities to the real fields, and from medicine to music.

Citing the example of the university’s former famous teachers and professors, the President of the Republic spoke about the institution’s teachers not only possessing extraordinary knowledge but also being committed members of their communities, working heart and soul for their students and schools, emphasizing that in this intellectual atmosphere, many students have studied over the past decades and centuries.

Some became professors, others became excellent physicists, doctors, humanities scholars, lawyers, and graduate intellectuals, but they all shaped the lives of their surroundings, Hungarian culture, and the universal world of science and made the university a citadel of knowledge and human example.

“The University of Debrecen is currently in its heyday, with almost fifty thousand students and a presence beyond the city’s borders, and its leaders have been able to make use of the structural opportunities of the past twenty-five years and have further built the university’s reputation and network of contacts,” he highlighted.

Addressing the students, Tamás Sulyok emphasized that a Debrecen diploma is a value that represents a great advantage, since in a world that is developing at an accelerated pace, acquiring internationally competitive knowledge is more important than ever, pointing out, “You will be the first generation that will not only encounter artificial intelligence but will also apply it on a wide scale, in situations that are even unimaginable today.”

In his speech, the President of the Republic greeted the students and staff from Partium, Transylvania, Subcarpathia, the Highlands, and the Southern Region, as well as the students who arrived from more distant parts of the world.

At the opening of the academic year, Rector Zoltán Szilvássy also addressed the first-year students, emphasizing that the European baccalaureate students are “the intellectual elite of the world”; they have everything that our two thousand years of culture have brought together in their brains.

“They understand humanities, real subjects, social sciences, and natural sciences; they are starting to get a feel for medicine and health science, and they have entrusted themselves to us for the years to come,” he said.

György Kossa, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University of Debrecen Foundation, explained that the new academic year is not just another entry in the university calendar; this day is a symbol of a new beginning, a new chapter in building a common future, highlighting that the University of Debrecen, as a national and universal institution, does not simply educate but also educates, shapes, and builds character and community, and this task is perhaps more important than ever in a utilitarian, value-losing world.

In his welcoming speech, László Papp, Mayor of Debrecen, said that Debrecen is today one of the most dynamically developing cities in the Central European region, but this development would be unthinkable without the university. “The recent large university investments and developments are proof that science, industry, and the city community plan and build together,” the mayor stated.

He added that the work invested is proving to be successful, and this is well supported by the numbers, as more than ever before, approximately 12,000 new first-year students will begin their university studies in the 2025/26 academic year.

At the event, the first-year students took an oath and symbolically received their study booklets, and then the university leaders presented awards and prizes.

The celebration of the new academic year will continue on September 17 at the Nagyerdei Stadium, with YouDay.

Source:dehir.hu | Photo credit: Papp László (Facebook)