Dean's welcome

For the past 100 years, Szeged has been home to one of the best-known and most distinguished institutions of higher education in Hungary. We are proud of our high quality teaching and scientific work, as well as the competent patient care of our departments. Among the many distinguished members of our faculty, the most famous one is Albert Szent-Györgyi, whose work was recognized by the scientific world with the Nobel Prize in 1937. His findings were based largely on the results of research carried out in Szeged. To celebrate the centenary of our University and of the medical education in Szeged, the Medical School took the name of the Nobel Prize-winning professor in 2021.

In recent years, the Medical School and the Clinical Centre, which provides the background for clinical training, have been enriched with a number of new buildings and educational facilities. The previous building of the Department of Surgery was refurbished and became the iconic Banga Ilona Health Sciences Education Centre. It is here that our undergraduate and postgraduate Academic Offices welcome medical students of all training programs. It is home to our internationally renowned, state-of-the-art Skills Centre as well. The building is also an excellent venue for our scientific and training events and a real meeting place for students and lecturers alike.

In order to strengthen the international competitiveness and recognition of the medical education in Szeged, the Albert Szent-Györgyi Medical School has committed itself to obtain the WFME license and following a thorough self-evaluation process covering several areas and an on-site visit by the Accreditation Committee, the program has been granted accreditation by the World Federation for Medical Education (WFME) for eight years, until 15 December 2031. This achievement is the result of hard work on part of the faculty’s students and staff. The license will make it easier for students to continue their studies or take up employment in other countries.

The University of Szeged is recognized by the international scientific community in almost all the most important ways. Every year, we organize prestigious international and national conferences, where experienced and young researchers present their latest research results. Ten Nobel Prize winners have visited the University and the Medical School since 2012. Over the past decades, distinguished scientists and excellent professors have worked hard and in depth to solve scientific issues in order to provide the new generations of doctors with up-to-date knowledge and modern approaches. The goal of the Medical School is to ensure that you will become thoroughly trained, empathic and innovative doctors. Today, the University of Szeged is one of the largest scientific centers in the country, and the Medical School contributes significantly to its prestige. We are consistently ranked among the top medical universities in Hungary in absolute terms of the excellence of our teaching staff. Our teachers and researchers have an outstanding record of grant applications and publications. The University offers you the opportunity to get involved in scientific research as well. During your studies, you can deepen your knowledge in the Scientific Study Circles. After graduation, our Centre for Specialization and Continuing Education offers a wide range of training programs and PhD courses.

The Medical School has a departmental structure, with practical work carried out in institutes and clinics. Patient care activities are coordinated by the Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Centre. High-quality medical training is provided in hospital wards and outpatient departments with a capacity of around 2,000 inpatients. Our health care facilities are national and regional centers for a number of medical specialties and they also make good use of their international connections. You will start your studies in an institution that is proud of its traditional values but involved in the latest research to prepare you for a wonderful profession. In the first 3 years, you will acquire the theoretical knowledge that forms the basis of medical knowledge in the basic and pre-clinical module of your studies. Then, in the clinical module, you will also become active participants in disease prevention, nursing, care and treatment.

Our students come from more than 40 countries, which creates a wonderful opportunity for building international relationships and lifelong friendships.

You can also enrich your study experience on our exchange placements abroad. The mobility agreements of the University provide students with the outstanding opportunity of professional development recognized all over Europe. International experience is important not only to learn languages but also to create new relationships, which can help medical students in their future career.

While learning is likely to be a part of your everyday life in the coming years, you will also have plenty of time to relax. There are ample cultural, sport, recreational and leisure opportunities at our University and in our city. The events organized by the University and the Medical School, which follow centuries-old traditions, provide a colorful and varied framework for the everyday life of university students. You can expect the upcoming years to be challenging but decisive and meaningful at the same time.

I look forward to a smooth start to your studies this academic year and to welcoming you personally.

On behalf of the Medical School’s management and myself, I wish you perseverance, commitment, success and good health.

Prof. Dr. György Lázár

Dean of the Medical School