| University of Debrecen | |
|---|---|
| Debreceni Egyetem | |
| Latin: Universitas Debreceniensis | |
| Established | 1538, 1912 |
| Type | Public |
| Rector | Prof. Dr. István Fábián |
| Academic staff | 1,700 |
| Students | 32,000 |
| Location | Debrecen, Hungary |
| Affiliations | EUA |
| Website | http://www.unideb.hu |
The University of Debrecen is a university located in Debrecen, Hungary. It is the oldest continuously operating institution of higher education in Hungary (since 1538).
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Higher education began in Debrecen with the Calvinist College of Debrecen, which was founded in 1538. Over centuries of its existence it was one of the key institutions of higher education in Hungary. In the beginning of the 20th century the College was transformed into a university, and has a strong link and cooperation with the present Calvinist College's Debrecen Reformed Theological University.
In 1908, the Calvinist Academy of Humanities was created, and in 1912, the Hungarian Royal University was founded. The university incorporated the theology, law, and arts faculties of the College and added a medical school. Teaching began in 1914 in the old Calvinist College buildings. In 1918, the first new medical school building was opened, and the original medical school campus was completed in 1927.
In 1921, the university took the name of István Tisza, former prime minister of Hungary. In 1932 the university's main building was completed. It is the largest building in the city, and was designed in eclectic and neo-baroque style.
The Faculty of Natural Sciences became an independent faculty in 1949, and moved into the new Chemistry Building in 1970.
In 1949/1950, the University was restructured under communist control. The primary goal of the "reorganization" was to split the university into smaller, less influential institutions, and also to weaken or even dissolve units which did not fit to the political agenda of the day. The Faculty of Theology was returned to the Calvinist College, the Faculty of Medicine became an independent university (until 2000), the Faculty of Law was discontinued, and members of the teaching staff were expelled from the University. The departments of English, French, Italian, German, and Classical Philology were closed down, while the Department of Russian expanded dramatically. The teaching of western languages resumed only after 1956, with the exception of Italian which was not offered again until the 1990s.
In 1952 the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Natural Sciences changed their name to Lajos Kossuth University, which they retained until 2000.
On January 1, 2000, the colleges and universities of Hajdú-Bihar county, the University of Agriculture, Lajos Kossuth University, and the Medical University, were combined. The resulting University of Debrecen had five university and three college level faculties, and 20,000 students. The Conservatory of Debrecen and schools of the University in Hajdúböszörmény and Nyíregyháza joined later.
The Debrecen Summer School, founded in 1927, is also located on campus, although it is technically independent from the university. The School teaches Hungarian culture and Hungarian as a foreign language to foreigners, year-round.
The most popular journal of the university is Egyetemi Élet ('University Life') and the leading online media of students is www.egyetemportal.hu.
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