Debrecen4U September 26, 2025

Foreign law students warmed up with a freshman picnic in Debrecen

The Faculty of Political Science and Law of the University of Debrecen welcomed the foreign students who are just starting their studies at an outdoor picnic on Wednesday, writes unideb.hu.

The organizers of the Welcome Day–Freshman Picnic aimed to ensure that the participants not only received the course material necessary for obtaining their diploma but also got to know the faculty, Hungarian culture and customs, and Debrecen in an informal way.

Zsolt Hajnal, associate professor at the Faculty of Law and Political Science of the University of Debrecen (DE ÁJK), said in connection with the program, “We are proud that more and more foreign students are choosing the faculty’s programs every year, and the number of those starting their studies is now approaching sixty.”

The two-semester, English-language LLM program in European law and international business law is particularly popular, and almost thirty people have been admitted to it this time. According to experience, many of those who complete the program stay at the faculty and join the doctoral school.

“With the Welcome Day—Freshman Picnic, we want our foreign students to get an idea of ​​our programs at the faculty, the Marton Géta Doctoral School of Law and Political Science, the Student Government, and the Praetor College in a more relaxed and informal way than usual, in one of the campus parks.”

“Our goal is for the freshmen and our foreign students already studying here to feel: we welcome them, we expect them, we are happy that they continue their studies here,” explained Zsolt Hajnal.

In the informal afternoon program entitled “Puskás, paprika, pálinka, or more? Hungarians through the eyes of a foreigner,” native speaker Daniel Haitas—who earned his law degree in Australia and then his PhD degree at the DE ÁJK—tried to introduce foreigners to the mysteries of Hungarian culture. Among other things, he spoke about the mixing of cultures and the meaning of Hungarian symbols.

“We hope that thanks to Welcome Day—Freshman Picnic, foreign students can better integrate into the faculty community. We hope that after they graduate, more of them will get involved in the research work here and contribute to building the faculty’s foreign relations,” explained Zsolt Hajnal.

The majority of foreign students starting their law studies in Debrecen come from Vietnam, Bangladesh, Jordan, and China.

Source and photo credit:dehir.hu (Photo: illustration)