The Senate approved Semmelweis University’s annual financial statements for 2025, prepared in accordance with the Hungarian Accounting Act, which was presented by Chancellor Dr. Lívia Pavlik. According to the report, the institution closed the year in a financially stable position while achieving significant asset growth. The university’s patient care revenues exceeded HUF 200 billion, while the educational contract with the state provided more than HUF 50 billion in revenue. Tuition revenues from fee-paying students amounted to over HUF 25 billion, and the university utilized nearly HUF 10 billion in grant funding. The year 2025 closed with a positive result of nearly HUF 12 billion, which the university can allocate to investments and developments. The total value of investments and renovations exceeded HUF 30 billion, serving partly to maintain the infrastructure and partly to expand it.
Amendments to certain provisions of the Organizational and Operational Rules (SZMSZ) were approved, addressing two main issues. One was the removal of emergency regulations, as emergency regulations have been elevated to the level of law. The other amendment concerns the employment requirements system. Under the new rule, the appointment of heads of organizational units belonging to the Clinical Center may be extended for up to two years after reaching the age of 70, provided that the appointment, when extended multiple times in this manner, lasts no longer than until the age of 75.
The senators supported technical amendments to the model curriculum for the cognitive behavioral consultant (CBT consultant) and the cognitive behavioral therapist (CBT therapist) postgraduate specialization programs.
Amendments to the model curriculum of FOK have been approved, the main points of which include restructuring the faculty’s summer internship system, the creation of certain thesis courses, placing greater emphasis on the teaching of artificial intelligence, the teaching of elective courses at the Anatomy & Innovation Center for Education and Research (AICER), and the option to substitute the Semmelweis Symposium with the completion of a course titled “Winter University.” The Senate also approved amendments to the rules of procedure for certain committees operating at FOK that had been established by the Senate.
With the Senate’s support, a new postgraduate specialist training will be launched at the Health Services Management Training Center (EMK) of the Faculty of Health and Public Administration (EKK) under the title Life Course Coordinator for Persons with Rare Diseases and Their Families. The goal is to train professionals who can help people living with rare diseases as well as their families navigate the healthcare, social, and educational systems with a comprehensive approach. The creation of the training was initiated by the Hungarian Federation of People with Rare and Congenital Diseases (RIROSZ), and the program will be launched alternately by Semmelweis University and Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) in a joint professional collaboration.
At the meeting, decisions were also made regarding modifications to two postgraduate specialist training courses offered by the Institute of Mental Health. Based on student feedback, the curriculum for the postgraduate specialist training course in Mental Health in the Workplace will be made more practice-oriented, the number of exams will be reduced, and the semester tuition fee for the program will change. In the case of the Specialist Training Course in Lactation Consulting, the number of class hours will be fine-tuned, which will not entail additional costs for the institution, as the extra teaching duties will be handled using existing faculty capacity.
The approved amendments to the Doctoral Regulation affect several areas, including the possibility of external chairs serving on doctoral committees, the rules governing publication affiliations, and the requirements regarding intellectual property and publications. The conditions for commencing doctoral studies and the administrative tasks related to the degree conferral process have also been clarified.
The senators also reviewed current leadership applications, including those for department heads, directors, and associate professors, as well as numerous other personnel matters. In addition, they voted on the conferment of Semmelweis University’s Outstanding Teacher Award, as well as on bestowing the titles of Professor Emeritus and Professor Honoris Causa.
At the May meeting, the Senate approved changes to the student composition of the Doctoral Students’ Union (DÖK) within the External Research Assessment Committee as well as amendments to the Statutes of HÖK. The latter aims to ensure the more democratic operation of HÖK, greater transparency, and stronger involvement of international students. Under the changes, a number of decisions will be returned to the jurisdiction of the Delegates’ Assembly, English will become an official secondary working language, and the International Cabinet and the new Organizational Development Committee may be established. The amendments also introduce stricter conflict-of-interest and scholarship rules, as well as modernizing data and document management regulations.
The senators listened to a presentation by Dr. Zsolt Kiss, Senior Advisor to the Rector, on the results of Semmelweis University’s Clinical Center. As he noted, since 2020, the university has accounted for 10 percent of Hungary’s total inpatient care, while also achieving significant growth in outpatient specialty care and several specialized fields. This expansion is evident not only in patient numbers but also in the complexity of care provided and the university’s role in reducing waiting lists, particularly in areas such as organ transplantation, pediatrics, and cardiac surgery. The Clinical Center has delivered performance exceeding its funding limits, while its financial management has remained exceptionally efficient even by national standards. The presentation also highlighted that the university undertakes significant, partially unfunded additional tasks in patient care, which will necessitate further decisions regarding funding and capacity expansion in the long term. Dr. Zsolt Kiss also briefly outlined the major developments and investments (e.g., AICER, the Diagnostic and Therapeutic Center of the Városmajor Heart and Vascular Center, the Onco-Interventional Department, the Semmelweis University Szent Rókus Health Center, the pediatric MRI examination room and waiting room, etc.), emphasizing that these projects were designed to develop a mutually reinforcing system of patient care, education, and research.
Eszter Keresztes
Translation: Dr. Balázs Csizmadia
Illustration: Attila Kovács – Semmelweis University
