The Senate supported the appointment of the two new Vice-Rectors

In the context of the organisational changes, the University published a call for applications for the two Vice-Rector positions at the end of October. Taking into account the opinion of the ad hoc selection committee that evaluated the applications received, Bruno van Pottelsberghe, Rector of Corvinus, decided on the two new executives and asked the Senate to comment on the two candidates’ applications before their appointment. At its meeting on 10 December, the body endorsed the appointment of Tamás Bartus, Full Professor, Head of the Institute of Social and Political Sciences, and Judit Nagy, Associate Professor (Institute of Operations and Decision Sciences) as Vice-Rector, each for a period of 1 year, in agreement with the candidates.  

The Rector stressed that owing to the decision, the right balance between knowledge of university operations, representation of the various strategic areas and genders has been achieved in the Executive Committee, which includes three Vice-Rectors in addition to the three Chief Officers. Tamás Bartus is a highly experienced quantitative social scientist who has been doing research and teaching at Corvinus for 20 years. According to Bruno van Pottelsberghe, he has a complex area of management and a big task ahead of him as the new head of faculty and research, so it was agreed that after 1 year they would assess the results and decide on the future. Regarding the position of Vice-Rector for Student Affairs, the Rector said that they are keen to attract an international expert, so the selection process will take longer. Over the next year, Judit Nagy’s diverse experience as a study programme leader, her strong motivation and her deep commitment to supporting the student journey will play a major role in setting up the professional area that reports to the Vice-Rector and creating a new institutional dynamic. 

The Senate also discussed other items on the agenda. Ákos Domahidi, Chief Operating Officer, presented the Corvinus 2025 base budget plan, which is aligned with the long-term strategic directions of the institution and the professional priorities defined in the Institutional Development Plan in force from 2024. These include: enhancing experiential education, strengthening the University’s international reputation by continuously improving research performance, and reinforcing the digital, service-oriented nature of the institution. The University’s request for core funding for the year 2025 from the Maintainer: HUF 21.33 billion, the key figures of the base budget are:  

• Planned amount of own revenues: HUF 13.38 billion 
• Planned amount of costs and expenditure: HUF 34.71 billion 
• Planned funding needs: HUF 21.33 billion  

The University planned to spend HUF 1.86 billion on conservation and maintenance investments from operational resources and HUF 0.60 billion from grant resources. The decision on adopting the base budget for 2025 shall be taken by the Maintainer’s Board of Trustees. 

Changes have been made to several parts of the Student Requirements to reflect the organisational changes that came into force on 1 November. In addition, corrections have been introduced to the Admission Regulation (Student Requirements, Part 1) to align it with the new institutional admission procedure (faster issuing of admission resolutions for foreign applicants, deadlines for the announcement of programmes, clarification of calculating points for master programmes). In addition to the legislative changes, the amendments to the Study and Examination Regulations (Part 3 of the Student Requirements) were also justified by the introduction of new ESG study programmes. In the Regulation on Student Fees and Benefits (Part 4 of the Student Requirements) the descriptions on the availability of scholarships were specified, and the cut-off scores used in the evaluation of the dormitory grant based on social needs were modified. A new element has been added to the regulation to allow an “Early Bird” reduction for foreign self-funded applicants submitting an early application, and a discount may be granted to international self-financed students who meet the admission requirements but do not receive a SH scholarship, and to students applying for a master’s degree in a Corvinus bachelor programme. A new section has been added to the Student Requirements: the purpose of the Regulation on Study Abroad (Part 9 of the Student Requirements) is to define the conditions and rules for applying for, participating in and receiving support for study abroad programmes announced and organised by the University for its students. The Senate adopted the changes to the Student Requirements as described above and supported the amendment of the Regulation on Student Fees to be decided by the Maintainer. 

The body supported the establishment and launch of two new subspecialisations (Sustainability Management and Tourism Innovation and Management) within the English-language Bachelor in Business and Management study programme. 

The Senate took a decision on awarding two Professor Emerita titles. Zsuzsanna Elekes, Full Professor is one of the leading experts on deviant behaviour (risk behaviour) in Hungary, she is a lecturer with outstanding research and publication achievements at our university, who has been strengthening the professional development of the institution and the cooperation of the professional community for decades through her various leadership and service activities. Erzsébet Kovács, Full Professor, started her career in actuarial science at the University more than 40 years ago. She has dedicated her entire life to the university as a lecturer, researcher, mentor, she has been a major and active player on the national and international academic scene.