The Hungarian government aims to see Semmelweis University ranked amongst the world’s top 100 universities and within Europe’s top ten medical training institutions by 2030, Balázs Hankó, the minister for culture and innovation, said in Budapest on Monday during the signing of an agreement enabling academic cooperation with Harvard University.
At the ceremony, Minister Balázs Hankó and Gábor Orbán, the head of the National Foundation for Healthcare and Medical Education, which maintains Semmelweis University, signed the contract allowing the partnership between the two institutions.
According to the minister, the agreement will allow the most successful Hungarian doctoral students and researchers to participate in joint programmes run by Semmelweis University and Harvard in both Budapest and Boston. The government will provide 150 million forints in funding to support the initiative.
Hankó said the cooperation was particularly important at a time when, in his view, some actors are attempting to weaken Hungarian universities’ international ties. He stressed that government support makes it possible to deepen cooperation with one of the world’s leading academic institutions.
The minister also recalled that five years ago, the leadership of 21 Hungarian universities opted for a renewal process designed to bring the country’s higher education institutions into the top tier internationally. Within this process, Semmelweis University has made the most progress, he said.
Currently ranked 272nd among the world’s roughly 30,000 universities, Semmelweis University is now within the top 1 per cent globally. Among medical training institutions, it holds 186th place worldwide and has become the leading university in Central and Eastern Europe, Hankó added.
Rector Béla Merkely noted that beyond its educational role, Semmelweis University is Hungary’s largest healthcare provider, treating roughly one in ten people in the country.
‘Government support makes it possible to deepen cooperation with one of the world’s leading academic institutions’
He also highlighted that it is the most international university in Hungary, with 35 per cent of its students coming from abroad, representing 130 countries. The institution maintains partnerships with globally recognized universities, including Heidelberg University, Karolinska Institute and Harvard University.
Under the newly supported cooperation programme, between 2026 and 2029, around 70 scholarship holders will take part in nine-month training programmes each academic year. Hungarian students participating in the initiative will receive full scholarships, Merkely said.
Gábor Orbán, chairman of the foundation maintaining the university, described the agreement as an important milestone not only for the institution but also for Hungarian higher education and healthcare as a whole.
He emphasized that the shift in Hungary’s higher education model has produced positive results, creating a more predictable framework for long-term planning. This has contributed to a stronger international presence, accelerated development, growing research performance and a more visible role in the global scientific community.
According to Orbán, the cooperation between Semmelweis University and Harvard demonstrates that Hungarian medical education can compete with the world’s leading institutions and reflects a deliberate strategy of development.
He added that the agreement also sends a message that Hungary is investing in innovation, knowledge and healthcare, while working to build what he described as a ‘nation of scientists’.
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