Semmelweis and Harvard Launch Joint Doctoral Training Program

Semmelweis University and Harvard University have signed a study agreement, that will enable the most successful Hungarian doctoral students and researchers to participate in joint training programs at the two higher education institutions in Budapest and Boston. The agreement was signed on Monday in Budapest by Balázs Hankó, Minister of Culture and Innovation, together with the head of the Foundation for National Health Care and Medical Education, the maintainer of Semmelweis University.

The government’s goal is for Semmelweis University to belong to the world’s top 100 universities and to Europe’s top 10 medical training institutions by 2030, Minister Balázs Hankó announced at the event. The politician said that

the Hungarian government will provide 150 million forints (395,000 euros) in support of the cooperation.

He added, “at a time when some people are deliberately trying to sever the international ties of Hungarian universities, government support is truly necessary to enable cooperation with this American institution, that is one of the best universities in the world.”

Béla Merkely, rector of Semmelweis University, pointed out that in addition to its educational activities, Semmelweis University is Hungary’s largest healthcare provider, treating one in ten Hungarians. It is also Hungary’s most international university, with 35 percent of its students coming from 130 countries, and it has links with world-renowned institutions such as Heidelberg University, the Karolinska Institute, and Harvard.

Within the framework of the cooperation with the latter, with the support of the agreement that has just been signed,

70 scholarship holders will be able to participate in a 9-month training program each academic year between 2026 and 2029, and Hungarian students will receive a 100 percent scholarship,

he explained.

L-R: Balázs Hankó, Minister of Culture and Innovation, Gábor Orbán, head of the Foundation for National Health Care and Medical Education, and Béla Merkely, Rector of Semmelweis University, sign the contract enabling academic cooperation between Semmelweis University and Harvard University. Photo: MTI/Kocsis Zoltán

Gábor Orbán, chairman of the board of trustees of the foundation that maintains the Budapest university, said that the signing of the agreement was a significant event not only for the university but also for Hungarian higher education and healthcare.

The collaboration between Semmelweis and Harvard is proof that Hungarian medical education is “playing in the same league” as the best in the world, that is the result of conscious development, he added.

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