The university established the Center of Education of International Studies (CEIS) last year, and in addition to earlier activities, which mostly included admissions and the administration of studies, a major priority of the new unit is the stronger incorporation of international students into everyday and scientific life at the university, Dr. Alán Alpár, vice-rector for international studies and the head of CEIS, told our website. He noted that thus far, students in the Hungarian, English and German programs lived in “three separate worlds” at the university, and the goal is to bring these worlds closer together, with the launch of new shared, integrated courses held in English being a main part of this. He said that a total of 90 students could register for the current course, 30 each from the three language programs, and the course was filled within a very short time. The final exam for the course will also serve to increase interaction between the students, as small teams with 2-3 students from each of the language programs will have to work together to submit their papers, added the vice-rector.
The newly launched course will address the topic of networks, management and career building, with the series of 12 lectures to be held weekly in the university’s prestigious Semmelweis Salon. The course’s program was put together to present topics to students that they have had less opportunity to hear about, such as building networks, management and lifestyle, noted Dr. Alpár. The first lecture was held by Dr. Péter Csermely, professor at the Department of Medical Chemistry, Molecular Biology and Pathobiochemistry, who talked about how our knowledge about molecular networks can help us to develop a successful lifestyle. In later lectures, students will listen to presentations by renowned professors and researchers of Semmelweis University as well as other universities, in a wide range of subjects such as founding startup and spinoff firms, digital health and data mining, among others, said Dr. Alpár.
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The other similar, newly launched courses include one that covers biomedical innovations and one in the topic of cardiac electrophysiology. These are all 2-credit elective courses, open for an equal number of Hungarian, English and German program students. In addition, a thematic series of programs presenting Hungarian culture has also been launched for Hungarian and international students. Beyond the academic programs, CEIS is also organizing joint sports and cultural events to better integrate international students into university life.
Tamás Deme
Photo: Attila Kovács – Semmelweis University
